U.S. Constitution: Amendment 1-10
The state plays the official role regarding the rights and freedoms of people. It has to protect them and to create conditions for practical implementation. Lawful guarantees of freedom are enclosed in the Constitution of the United States and guaranteed by an independent court.
The Constitution did not consolidate the rights and freedoms of Americans in the initial form, because they were declared in state constitutions, and the aim of the U.S. Constitution was limited to the creation of a system of bodies of a state power.
The Declaration of Independence (1776) proclaimed, that all men are born equal, and the freedom is an inalienable right. The authors rightly feared, that the proclamation of the principles of equality of rights and freedoms in the Federal Constitution may lead to a split between Northern and Southern States in the conditions of existence of slavery in the Southern States.
The Constitutional Convention at Independence Hall ("Constitutional Convention of 1787 | Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia", 2017) was held from the 25th of May to the 17th of September in 1787. Anti-Federalists objected to the Constitution at the time of the ratification debate, protested that the new system threatened liberties, and suggested that if the delegates had worried indeed about the defence of the individual rights, they would have included provisions that accomplished that. In December 1787 Thomas Jefferson called the omission of a Bill of Rights a major mistake: "A bill of rights is what the people are entitled to against every government on earth." (Linder, 2017).
As a result, supporters of the democratic movement demanded additions to the U.S. Constitution about the rights and freedoms fixed at the Federal level. It was the main condition of the ratification from Southern States. Taking into account such categorical requirements, the members of the Constitutional Convention were made to consent to insertion of the additional articles defining the legal status of the individual.
James Madison took the initiative to offer a Bill of Rights in 1789 during the First session of the Congress (Linder, 2017). The legislators proceeded in formulating the text of the amendments from the idea of natural rights and liberties and establishment of limits the power of the state concerning the person. Ten from twelve amendments were approved by the States in December 1791.
Since 10 December 1791 the Bill of Rights guaranteed American people: freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of press, the right to bear and keep arms, the right to peaceful meeting, protection from unreasonable searches and seizures, the right to the prompt and public trial by impartial jury.
From my point of view, one of the most surprising parts is Amendment VIII, which interdicts excessive bail, excessive fines or cruel and unusual punishment ("U.S. Senate: Constitution of the United States", 2017). I hold the opinion, that the person consciously makes a decision and takes actions, that have an influence on his existence in future. Every crime deserves its own penalty aside from its severity. So I think, that it is impossible …
