American Government Reflections

Chapter 13: Fundamental Freedoms, Freedom and the Bill of Rights

Freedom of Religion
The way that the Bill of Rights guarantees the freedom of religion is through the
Establishment Clause which states that the government will neither favor one religion over
others, establish an official religion, or favor religion generally and the Free Exercise Clause
which states that a person can practice any religion they desire. This means that I have the right
to practice any religion I want, or no religion at all, as long as it does not pose a threat to the
public safety. I believe that the decision to keep government separate from religion allows the
government to act more freely and make decisions based upon all of the citizen's need rather than
the opinions of a few. Separation between church and State also allows society to advance more
quickly as the beliefs of the church do not conflict with government aid to research and findings
by scientists and others. However, there is still controversy about government involvement in
religion. Many public schools have debated whether or not to offer or allow religious classes and
optional times for prayer and religious study. Additionally, there is debate on whether property
owned by religious organizations should be taxed. I believe that if all property owned by
organizations are taxed, the government will not be showing any favoritism toward a religion and
treats the property similar to any other. Taxing the organizations would also increase revenue and
lower taxes for others in the community. Then, I think that a time for religious studies and prayer
in schools may be beneficial to those whose religion requires they pray several times a day. I
myself think that the time would waste valuable time for learning, however I can understand why
a person would want the time. I also believe that religion should not be taught at school unless
discussing its relevance to literature, since various allusions are made to religion in literary
works and it is necessary to understand these references to comment on the message the author
may want to convey about the human condition. Then, as for references to religion on money and
in the flag salute, I do not mind though I think that this is a way in which the government is
violating the Constitution by favoring another religion over another.
Freedom of Speech and of the Press
The freedom of free speech and press is granted in the Constitution, however free speech and
press must be limited to prevent threats to national security. Two of the ways that free speech and
press can harm the nation's national security is through treason and sedition. This caused Alien
and Sedition Acts to be passed several times in the history of the U.S. I believe that this is needed
as this helps limit the threat that foreign powers could pose to the U.S. and helps increase the
security of the nation. In addition, the government cannot use prior restraint to stop someone
from expressing an idea or information. One exception, however, is for classified and sensitive
material that could threaten national security if the government can give compelling reasons to
do so. The press also has shield laws that allow them to protect the identity of their sources, but
these are only available in some states. Also, they cannot slander or make a libel against a person
to intentionally harm their reputation and character. I think that this gives some protection to
individuals and prevents the press from publishing stories that are not true about the person.
There are several forms of protected free speech such as many types of art and public
demonstrations. I think that these would be the best ways to convey a person's ideas and feelings
about a subject and all of them are more peaceful and less harmful ways to get a message across.
Freedom of Assembly and Petition

Demonstrations and protests are some of the more common types of examples to the freedom
of assembly and petition. The Bill of Rights gives people the right to demonstrate on public
property, but some restrictions such as time, place, and manner regulations are in effect to keep
order, manage traffic, and keep the public as safe as possible. Police are also permitted to stop
demonstrations if they turn violent and arrest those who began the violence to protect public
safety. Then, assembly on private property is not given in the First Amendment. Owners and
businesses that have private property may prevent picketing and demonstrations on their
property. I believe that allowing people to demonstrate on public, but not private, property
protects the people that on the private property and makes it safer for the public. This also
prevents damages that may occur during a demonstration. Freedom of assembly does more than
protect the right to demonstrate as it also applies to a person's right to participate and associate
with various groups without interference by the government.