14th Amendment Dbq Essay

Our founding fathers had built the, United States of America, because of the desire for freedom and the right to be treated as individuals. However, due to recent events that have taken place, and controversies that are well known today, many Americans seem to differ on the fact that America does serve equality, and promotes correct justice. The 14th amendment was established to ensure the rights of the people, stating all citizens shall be given “Due process… and will have equal protection…” As of right now in the 21st century, the effectiveness of this amendment and the bill of rights is protecting the rights of all citizens, but is lacking.
“The 14th amendment was added to extent (our) rights to the state level...and to ensure due process and equal protection to all citizens” states Document 1. The Bill of Rights also include, freedom of religion, freedom from self incrimination and due process, rights of accused persons, rights of trial by jury, and freedom from cruel and unusual punishments. Their purpose is to ensure the rights of the people, and limit the

government's power. The founding fathers tried their best to avoid an authoritative government, so they made sure the people would be the ones to determine their freedom, and to make sure the government is not abusing their power and hurting the people’s free will. But in some court cases, the purpose of the Bill of Rights did not seem to matter.
In 1984, Gregory Lee Johnson burned an American flag in Dallas, and was convicted under the Texas law.

He was sentenced to one year in jail and given a $2,000 fine. After the conviction was reversed by the Court of Criminal Appeals, the case went up to the supreme court. “In a 5-to-4 decision, the Court held that Johnson’s burning of the flag was protected expression under the First Amendment” stated oyez.org. This final decision stated that Johnson’s actions were protected by the First Amendment, falling under expressive conduct. The court stated this principle that “the Government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable. This court case proved that the, Bill of Rights is still valid, and is protecting the people and limiting the government. But in some other controversial cases, certain amendments seem to be

ignored.
Considering the death penalty, the federal government and states disagree whether to use it. It is said that it violates the 8th amendment. “Freedom from excessive bail, and cruel and unusual punishments.” Though, the supreme court has upheld it, many states still take the initiative to abolish the use of the death penalty in state prosecutions. The reason why the death penalty is said to cruel and unusual, is because in Declaration of Independence it states, “ all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Therefore, it is deemed cruel to use in 19 states, including Maryland, Illinois, Nebraska, and Connecticut according to Prison Policy Initiative. SO in situations like this, the Bill of Rights does not seem to be working with the people, giving the state more power.
As mentioned before, the Bill of rights protect the people in America, and limits the government. But at times it looks as if the Bill of Rights is not properly doing its job to serve the people their rights completely. So to many, the Bill or Rights lacks in doing its job, but in many court cases, it has served the people. It saved them from being improperly charged, and gave the courts a principal to go by. In turn, this shows that the US may not be perfect, but is growing gradually.