POLI 2051 Lecture Notes - Lecture 15: Equal Protection Clause, Free Exercise Clause, Pure Speech
2 May 2016
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Chapter 15-16: civil liberties and civil rights: civil liberties vs. civil rights: Civil liberties: freedoms guaranteed to the individual. Freedoms found in the bill of rights, the enjoyment of which are protected from government interference. They take the form of negative restraints on government. Congress shall make no law : examples: freedom of speech, press, assembly, religion, etc. Civil rights: they declare what government must do or provide. Guarantees by government of equal citizenship to all social groups. It is generally a claim upon state action, usually asserted by a group, usually the have not"s in society: examples: right to vote, right to a jury trial, housing and employment have been included more recently. Civil liberties: the bill of rights in context: The idea of a national or federal bill of rights had very little meaning initially; it was seen as limiting action of the national government, not the state governments.
