The First Amendment

Paper Summary:

The paper looks at the major issues that arose in the evolution of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, notes the interpretation of the anti-establishment clause and explores the significance of the First Amendment. The paper then discusses the contemporary issues of free speech, such as the law pertaining to e-mail, real-time texting, subscription television, and satellite radio.

Outline:
Origin, Provisions, and Ratification
Early Significance, Evolution, and History
Modern Evolution
Continuing Significance

From the Paper:

"The original language of the U.S. Constitution encountered difficulty during the original ratification process by those who believed it was insufficiently protective of civil rights. Those arguments generated the first ten constitutional amendments in 1789, known as the Bill of Rights (Friedman, p.75). The First Amendment, in particular, was considered necessary to ensure that the new American nation remained free from the type of state-sponsored religion from which the original settlers had fled in England, where the Royal Crown imposed Catholicism on the entire populace."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Dershowitz, A. M. (2002) Shouting Fire: Civil Liberties in a Turbulent Age. New York: Little Brown.
• Friedman, L.M. (2005) A History of American Law. New York: Touchstone.
• Haynes, C., Chaltain, S., Glisson (2006) First Freedoms: A Documentary History of First Amendment Rights in America. London: Oxford University Press

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