A Flexible and Living Document: The United States Constitution
America- it’s the land of the free, home of the great. Some people would disagree and might wonder how I could say that. Have you ever thought about America, and the first things that pop into your head are fame and popularity? Or maybe, you thought about money and good fortune, mansions, and fancy cars. For others, maybe they saw in their head a strong military. But how many times have you ever thought about America and the American Dream, and the first thing that pops into your head is America’s government? Have you ever thought about how much impact America’s government and important documents affect the American Dream? An important document that has made a huge impact on both America’s government and the American Dream is the United States Constitution. Though others might say that America’s Constitution is an old
document with overpowering limits, the freedoms, amendments, and laws listed in the Constitution make it a living document that is flexible enough to change with the times.
When considering the fact that America’s Constitution is living, one of the first reasons of this is because of the 27 Amendments, or changes, to the Constitution. Back in the 1700’s, only white men could vote. Those men also had to be over the age of 21, not the age of 18 like the laws state today. Over time, people argued that the government had no right to take away the right to vote from people for the color of their skin. When
Abraham Lincoln was in office, he decided it was time for a change. It was the year of 1863 when he gave slaves their freedom and banned slavery in the United States from there on out. It was the year of 1870 when the 15th Amendment was created and applied to the Constitution. This was the amendment that allowed people of color to have the right to vote in America. When it comes to America’s Republic, or Representative Democracy, voting is one of the most important (if not the most important) thing that takes place in America’s government. Voting is how American’s determine who will rule over them for however long. When it comes to the President, they can serve up to two terms of four years, along with the Vice President. But without being able to vote, American’s would be forced to obey under a leadership that they might not agree with, and that might lead
to problems among the people.
America isn’t known as a place of sobriety. When you think of celebrities in America, you think of parties, drinking, going a little crazy. Not all celebrities are like that, and not all American’s follow that path either. But the government tried to place a ban on alcohol with the 18th Amendment. This Amendment banned the consumption and making of alcohol. Good, right? Well, a lot of American’s who had been drinking alcohol for quite some time had a problem with it. When the government and citizens disagree, it is not a very pretty situation, and that’s an understatement. You have near chaos because everyone is trying to take sides and disagree with one another. When the government saw how it had begun to
affect the people, they created the 21stAmendment. This Amendment was used to repeal the 18th Amendment. A large reason why this took place was due to the fact that they felt their personal lives were being interfered with by the government. America’s Constitution is still being referred to, changed, and looked at to see what the structure for America’s government should be. Big topics like abortion, same-sex marriage, the death penalty, assisted suicide, along with several other topics are still being contemplated and added into the
outlines of the Constitution using the amendments. A quote taken from a book by Tamra Orr states, “Contemporary issues like gun ownership, health care, environmental standards, the death penalty, medical marijuana, same-sex marriage, and assisted suicide all hinge upon the Constitution’s….” This is evidence that can be used when saying that by creating amendments, we can change the Constitution to make it flexible enough to reach the needs and standards of today’s society.
When I think of America’s Constitution, some things that immediately pop into my head are the Preamble, the 7 Articles, and the 27 amendments. Even though I have given evidence that the Amendments (in general) have allowed the Constitution to be flexible over time, the first 10 amendments make some of the biggest effects on America’s government. These are also known as The Bill of Rights. These give American’s their freedoms and rights as citizens, while limiting the government. The rights listed in the Bill of Rights play a role in the everyday lives of Americans, while creating a large impact on the overall lives of Americans. When something makes you mad and you’re in public, don’t you want to express your concern? Do you take part in a religion without being in fear of being harmed or killed? In America, those opportunities are given to you. Both of those things are mentioned within the first amendment- this gives you the freedom of speech, religion, press, petition, and assembly. But the Bill of Rights goes much further than just that. There would be no point in a democracy if only certain people were allowed to have a say in leadership, or they were the only ones able to lead. Those ideas are found in the ideas of an Oligarchy. Though that is a simplified explanation of an oligarchy, they aren’t found in the Representative Democracy found in America, otherwise known as a Republic. Not only would there be no point in a democracy without the Constitution, the ideas found in new technology wouldn’t have been accessible if we as citizens weren’t given the right to express our new ideas in front of others. Without the press and all the publicity that comes with it, there would be no American Dream. The Bill of Rights keeps us as citizens from doing things that we don’t want to do. For example, the Bill of Rights states that soldiers cannot be quartered in homes without the homeowner’s permission. Although that doesn’t necessarily apply as much in our daily lives as the publicity of the press and the pictures that plaster the covers of tabloids, even those rights are important to the people. When the colonists rebelled against Great Britain for taxation without representation (like the Boston Tea Party), people were taken out of their homes and harmed by the soldiers sent in by the King at the time. Things like this led to the American Revolution. So when America became independent from Great Britain and the king, our founding fathers started the ideas that having soldiers quartered in the homes of the people (against their will) shouldn’t have to happen to American’s again. The fact that we as American’s have our own rights, created by the government chosen by the people, is a dream in itself. These rights are listed in nowhere other than the Constitution. Not only do we have rights under the National government, but rights can be given out to each individual state. You might be wondering, “How does this tie into the American Dream and how does this prove the Constitution to be a living andflexible document?” Whether it be waking up and going to church, buying a new magazine about your favorite celebrity, or being able to have a fair trial by jury in civil cases, the Bill of Rights still apply today and we have the freedom we have so we all have the chance to achieve our dreams.
The laws created over time in America can make drastic changes in how we go about our everyday lives. For example, there have been states that have decided to legalize the use of medical marijuana. This new law can be taken both positively and negatively. It can be used to make big advancements in medicine and health procedures, or it can ruin the health of the people living in those places and taking its use for granted. But, while this law has caused lots of different debates over time, these laws are used to keep America’s government running smoothly. Over time, we have made new laws and we have also changed them. There used to be no limits on the amount of terms a president could serve in office. But after seeing how the amount of time started effecting how the president’s used the power and what kind of things they were doing, Congress created a limit so everyone was given the same amount of time. The laws created are under the Constitution; therefore all laws must be Constitutional. That’s
why the Legislative Branch starts the ideas of a law and creates a draft, the Judicial Branch checks them and makes sure the ideas found in the new law are Constitutional, and the Executive Branch (the President) can either approve it and make it a new law, or veto it. That means he rejects it. But if 2/3 of Congress approves the law, it can override the President’s veto and can become a law. This is a system called Checks and Balances. This is when all 3 branches of America’s government have their own jobs, while they each balance out the power in each of the branches. The President in the Executive Branch is given the power to veto the laws created by the Legislative Branch, or Congress (which consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate). All three of these branches are used to keep the government in order and still base their jobs off of the ideas listed in the Constitution. So with all of the laws made being Constitutional, the Constitution is therefore considered the Supreme Law of the Land. The laws applied today can be found to be Constitutional, which also supports the ideas that can conclude to the Constitution being a living and flexible document that can change with the times.
Although some people are willing to disagree and think the government is too complex, overpowering, and controlling, America’s government is used to give us freedoms, rights, and the ability to do things in order to achieve any dreams that can become a reality in America itself. Some things that are possible in America might not be available in China, where a large industry is factory work, along with several other smaller industries.
America’s Constitution creates a civilized and controlled government. The Bill of Rights, the 27 amendments, and the laws created in the Constitution are all ways that the Constitution is flexible enough to change with the times. Michael S. Greco once said, “The document is the U.S. Constitution. Drafted at a time when America’s young democracy was in danger of splintering, it not only saved us then, but also helped us survive the Civil War, the Great Depression, school segregation...” The Constitution continues to protect us from things threatening to tear down our government while giving us all hope for our dreams to become a reality using the Bill of Rights, the 27 Amendments, and the laws we create. As the times change, so does our Constitution and that is why the American Dream is achievable throughout anything using our freedoms and ideas found in our flexible and living Constitution.
America- it’s the land of the free, home of the great. Some people would disagree and might wonder how I could say that. Have you ever thought about America, and the first things that pop into your head are fame and popularity? Or maybe, you thought about money and good fortune, mansions, and fancy cars. For others, maybe they saw in their head a strong military. But how many times have you ever thought about America and the American Dream, and the first thing that pops into your head is America’s government? Have you ever thought about how much impact America’s government and important documents affect the American Dream? An important document that has made a huge impact on both America’s government and the American Dream is the United States Constitution. Though others might say that America’s Constitution is an old
document with overpowering limits, the freedoms, amendments, and laws listed in the Constitution make it a living document that is flexible enough to change with the times.
When considering the fact that America’s Constitution is living, one of the first reasons of this is because of the 27 Amendments, or changes, to the Constitution. Back in the 1700’s, only white men could vote. Those men also had to be over the age of 21, not the age of 18 like the laws state today. Over time, people argued that the government had no right to take away the right to vote from people for the color of their skin. When
Abraham Lincoln was in office, he decided it was time for a change. It was the year of 1863 when he gave slaves their freedom and banned slavery in the United States from there on out. It was the year of 1870 when the 15th Amendment was created and applied to the Constitution. This was the amendment that allowed people of color to have the right to vote in America. When it comes to America’s Republic, or Representative Democracy, voting is one of the most important (if not the most important) thing that takes place in America’s government. Voting is how American’s determine who will rule over them for however long. When it comes to the President, they can serve up to two terms of four years, along with the Vice President. But without being able to vote, American’s would be forced to obey under a leadership that they might not agree with, and that might lead
to problems among the people.
America isn’t known as a place of sobriety. When you think of celebrities in America, you think of parties, drinking, going a little crazy. Not all celebrities are like that, and not all American’s follow that path either. But the government tried to place a ban on alcohol with the 18th Amendment. This Amendment banned the consumption and making of alcohol. Good, right? Well, a lot of American’s who had been drinking alcohol for quite some time had a problem with it. When the government and citizens disagree, it is not a very pretty situation, and that’s an understatement. You have near chaos because everyone is trying to take sides and disagree with one another. When the government saw how it had begun to
affect the people, they created the 21stAmendment. This Amendment was used to repeal the 18th Amendment. A large reason why this took place was due to the fact that they felt their personal lives were being interfered with by the government. America’s Constitution is still being referred to, changed, and looked at to see what the structure for America’s government should be. Big topics like abortion, same-sex marriage, the death penalty, assisted suicide, along with several other topics are still being contemplated and added into the
outlines of the Constitution using the amendments. A quote taken from a book by Tamra Orr states, “Contemporary issues like gun ownership, health care, environmental standards, the death penalty, medical marijuana, same-sex marriage, and assisted suicide all hinge upon the Constitution’s….” This is evidence that can be used when saying that by creating amendments, we can change the Constitution to make it flexible enough to reach the needs and standards of today’s society.
When I think of America’s Constitution, some things that immediately pop into my head are the Preamble, the 7 Articles, and the 27 amendments. Even though I have given evidence that the Amendments (in general) have allowed the Constitution to be flexible over time, the first 10 amendments make some of the biggest effects on America’s government. These are also known as The Bill of Rights. These give American’s their freedoms and rights as citizens, while limiting the government. The rights listed in the Bill of Rights play a role in the everyday lives of Americans, while creating a large impact on the overall lives of Americans. When something makes you mad and you’re in public, don’t you want to express your concern? Do you take part in a religion without being in fear of being harmed or killed? In America, those opportunities are given to you. Both of those things are mentioned within the first amendment- this gives you the freedom of speech, religion, press, petition, and assembly. But the Bill of Rights goes much further than just that. There would be no point in a democracy if only certain people were allowed to have a say in leadership, or they were the only ones able to lead. Those ideas are found in the ideas of an Oligarchy. Though that is a simplified explanation of an oligarchy, they aren’t found in the Representative Democracy found in America, otherwise known as a Republic. Not only would there be no point in a democracy without the Constitution, the ideas found in new technology wouldn’t have been accessible if we as citizens weren’t given the right to express our new ideas in front of others. Without the press and all the publicity that comes with it, there would be no American Dream. The Bill of Rights keeps us as citizens from doing things that we don’t want to do. For example, the Bill of Rights states that soldiers cannot be quartered in homes without the homeowner’s permission. Although that doesn’t necessarily apply as much in our daily lives as the publicity of the press and the pictures that plaster the covers of tabloids, even those rights are important to the people. When the colonists rebelled against Great Britain for taxation without representation (like the Boston Tea Party), people were taken out of their homes and harmed by the soldiers sent in by the King at the time. Things like this led to the American Revolution. So when America became independent from Great Britain and the king, our founding fathers started the ideas that having soldiers quartered in the homes of the people (against their will) shouldn’t have to happen to American’s again. The fact that we as American’s have our own rights, created by the government chosen by the people, is a dream in itself. These rights are listed in nowhere other than the Constitution. Not only do we have rights under the National government, but rights can be given out to each individual state. You might be wondering, “How does this tie into the American Dream and how does this prove the Constitution to be a living andflexible document?” Whether it be waking up and going to church, buying a new magazine about your favorite celebrity, or being able to have a fair trial by jury in civil cases, the Bill of Rights still apply today and we have the freedom we have so we all have the chance to achieve our dreams.
The laws created over time in America can make drastic changes in how we go about our everyday lives. For example, there have been states that have decided to legalize the use of medical marijuana. This new law can be taken both positively and negatively. It can be used to make big advancements in medicine and health procedures, or it can ruin the health of the people living in those places and taking its use for granted. But, while this law has caused lots of different debates over time, these laws are used to keep America’s government running smoothly. Over time, we have made new laws and we have also changed them. There used to be no limits on the amount of terms a president could serve in office. But after seeing how the amount of time started effecting how the president’s used the power and what kind of things they were doing, Congress created a limit so everyone was given the same amount of time. The laws created are under the Constitution; therefore all laws must be Constitutional. That’s
why the Legislative Branch starts the ideas of a law and creates a draft, the Judicial Branch checks them and makes sure the ideas found in the new law are Constitutional, and the Executive Branch (the President) can either approve it and make it a new law, or veto it. That means he rejects it. But if 2/3 of Congress approves the law, it can override the President’s veto and can become a law. This is a system called Checks and Balances. This is when all 3 branches of America’s government have their own jobs, while they each balance out the power in each of the branches. The President in the Executive Branch is given the power to veto the laws created by the Legislative Branch, or Congress (which consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate). All three of these branches are used to keep the government in order and still base their jobs off of the ideas listed in the Constitution. So with all of the laws made being Constitutional, the Constitution is therefore considered the Supreme Law of the Land. The laws applied today can be found to be Constitutional, which also supports the ideas that can conclude to the Constitution being a living and flexible document that can change with the times.
Although some people are willing to disagree and think the government is too complex, overpowering, and controlling, America’s government is used to give us freedoms, rights, and the ability to do things in order to achieve any dreams that can become a reality in America itself. Some things that are possible in America might not be available in China, where a large industry is factory work, along with several other smaller industries.
America’s Constitution creates a civilized and controlled government. The Bill of Rights, the 27 amendments, and the laws created in the Constitution are all ways that the Constitution is flexible enough to change with the times. Michael S. Greco once said, “The document is the U.S. Constitution. Drafted at a time when America’s young democracy was in danger of splintering, it not only saved us then, but also helped us survive the Civil War, the Great Depression, school segregation...” The Constitution continues to protect us from things threatening to tear down our government while giving us all hope for our dreams to become a reality using the Bill of Rights, the 27 Amendments, and the laws we create. As the times change, so does our Constitution and that is why the American Dream is achievable throughout anything using our freedoms and ideas found in our flexible and living Constitution.