What is an amendment?
An Amendment is defined as one of the provisions of the U.S. Constitution enacted after the original Constitution became law; or an addition or change to an existing document or plan. There are 27 amendments in the U.S. Constitution. The original Constitution is held at the National Archives Building in Washington D.C.
The first amendment
The first amendment is the most well known. They are the freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, and the last one is to petition.
the second amendment
The second amendment protects the right of the people to bear arms.
The Third AMENDMENT
It protects the quartering of soldiers in private homes
The fourth amendment
It protects against unreasonable searches and seizures. This can be used when police want to search somewhere without a warrant or reasonable cause.
the fifth amendment
It provides right to due process which addresses the fact that someone can only be tried once for the same crime. They also can refuse to answer questions on the grounds that the answer might tend to incriminate them.
the sixth amendment
This amendment is the right to a speedy, fair trial. This ensures that the accused person will not be held in jail for a lengthy period as a means of punishing the accused without a trial. There also must be evidence and must hear witnesses from both sides before deciding the verdict. This amendment also states that if someone cannot afford a lawyer, one will be appointed to them.
the THIRTEENTH amendment
This amendment is the abolishment of slavery. This was the final act in ending slavery in the united States. It also prohibits the binding of a person to perform personal services due to debt.
the eighteenth amendment
This was the ban of alcoholic beverages. This was repealed by the Twenty-First amendment.
the Nineteenth amendment
This amendment is extending the vote to all qualified women in federal and state elections. Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were two big feminists who helped put woman's suffrage to the forefront of society.
The Twenty-Second amendment
This amendment puts a limit on Presidential Terms (two four year periods) The only president to have a third term was Franklin D. Roosevelt which was in 1940 and had a fourth term in 1944. The amendment was not enacted till 1951.
the twenty-sixth amendment
This amendment made 18-year-olds eligible to vote in all federal, state, and local elections. Before this the minimum age had been 21 in most states.