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civil rights & history, volume 9 number 3, March 2007 LIVE FREE OR DIE, part 1 Live Free, or Die: A History and Analysis of the Bill of Rights in Several Acts “In my weak judgment, a government is strong when it applies to the most important end of all governments, the rights and privileges of the people… jury trial, the press and religion, and other essential rights are not to be given up.” Written by the rebellious and officially unrecognized statesmen of an unborn nation, the American Constitution has stood longer than any other modern charter. Its expansiveness, coupled with the flexibility and personal freedom protections of the Bill of Rights, have seen this country from thirteen British-ruled colonies to fifty unified states making up the world’s first “superpower.” Modern America seems to forget its modest roots as a struggling protectorate of another nation; but our forefathers who fought the tyrannical laws imposed upon them saw this very situation. British Parliament passed the Sugar and Currency Acts in 1764, which were specifically designed to bring money to the Crown from the colonies by raising levy on non-British imports and banning American currency. These were two of England’s first official decrees that would, in little more than a decade, lead to the American Revolution. In Massachusetts during a town meeting on the subject of “taxation without representation” there was a mention of unified colonial protest against the new legislation. Many colonies reacted with protest to these compulsory sanctions by refusing the purchase or use of imported British merchandise. Further reason for resistance was found the following year with the Quartering Act, in which the colonists were forced to provide barracks and provisions for the British troops. Shortly thereafter the Stamp Act was passed. This bill was the first tax aimed completely at the colonies and was not well met. The stamps issued by Britain were used as proof of tax paid for almanacs, newspapers, legal documents, pamphlets, and tracts, as well as dice and playing cards. An organized and clandestine group was formed to “dissuade” the Parliament’s stamp agents from collecting the tax. They became known as the Sons of Liberty, and were so successful in their persuasion that all the agents resigned before the Stamp Act even came into effect. Meeting in Independence Hall in May of 1776, the Second Continental Congress advocated the creation of a new colonial authority by and for the people of their respective states: “Adopt such a government as shall, in the opinion of the representatives of the people, best conduce to the safety and happiness of their constituents in particular and America in general.” Representative Richard H. Lee, of Virginia, made the motion in Congress that the colonies “are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states.” After a drafting committee was formed to create a manuscript announcing America’s autonomy, Thomas Jefferson was chosen to write the document. On July 2, 1776 Congress voted in favor of self-government and two days later recognized the Declaration of Independence. During the session that he motioned for colonial autonomy Lee also endorsed a confederacy of the proposed states. After a year of debate the Articles of Confederation were approved by Congress on November 15, 1777, but not ratified by the states until 1781. On the foundation of a collective of states representing themselves within a government without being ruled by it, the idea of a Bill of Rights for the Articles seemed redundant. In this neophyte republic all states were equally represented despite their population size, and there was only one branch of government needed. A supermajority (two-thirds of the former colonies) was requisite for any legislation to pass, and it was necessary for amendments to be supported by unanimous vote. Despite all planning and intentions, however, it became clear that the Articles could not support a nation even just beginning to flex and stretch its unsteady self. In the next four years efforts to revise the Articles of Confederation were unsuccessful in gaining the undivided support required for legal alteration. During this time America saw a dichotomy in the sudden boom of flourishing local and state politics tempered with territorial arguments, commercial interstate issues, and imperious majorities. This changed in 1786 when the Virginia Legislature motioned that a convention of all thirteen states be held in May of 1787 to look into solutions. The fifty-five men who arrived in Philadelphia for the “Grand Convention” took four months to declare their own government bankrupt, elect a president and cabinet, and draft the Constitution. At its conclusion, delegates Edmund Randolph and George Mason of Virginia and Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts rejected the draft because it lacked a Bill of Rights. In June of 1788, New Hampshire became the necessary ninth state required to ratify the new US Constitution and on July 2nd Congress announced its official adoption. Still, the idea of a Bill of Rights beyond those held in the individual state constitutions persisted as an issue. Although originally opposed to the idea, James Madison drafted a Bill of Rights and used it as a platform during his run for the first House of Representatives. Our Bill of Rights, based on Madison’s bill, was ratified on December 15, 1791. The history behind the United States Constitution and its Bill of Rights is as unique as the concept of a government by and for its people. In the following monthly installments we will combine some of the ten and pull apart others to discern their reasons for having been writ, and their modern implications for us all. We are truly blessed to have this right.
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