List of ratified amendments
From Uniting Amendment
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| December 15, 1791 | | December 15, 1791 | ||
| Liberty and justice | | Liberty and justice | ||
| + | | rowspan="10" | The United States Constitution is the shortest in history and therefore is rather vague. It enumerated many powers of the federal government and recognized some rights guaranteed to the people, however, there was ambiguity about the powers and rights that were not mentioned in the document. Many people were worried that the federal government would take all the powers not mentioned in the Constitution and infringe the people's rights that were not specified in the document. The Bill of Rights cleared up some of that ambiguity by specifying rights that could not be violated and indicated that all powers not mentioned in the Constitution belonged to the states. It was passed by Congress just six months after the Constitution went into force and was ratified two years later. The Bill of Rights helped to unify the new union of states and kept the country together for more than 60 years. | ||
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| December 15, 1791 | | December 15, 1791 | ||
| Liberty and justice | | Liberty and justice | ||
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| Right to due process; no self-incrimination or double jeopardy; rules for grand jury and eminent domain | | Right to due process; no self-incrimination or double jeopardy; rules for grand jury and eminent domain | ||
Revision as of 11:11, 14 November 2014
| # | Description | Date passed by Congress | Date ratified | Type | Context/effect | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | No establishment of religion; freedom of religion, speech, and assembly; right to petition for redress of grievances. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice | The United States Constitution is the shortest in history and therefore is rather vague. It enumerated many powers of the federal government and recognized some rights guaranteed to the people, however, there was ambiguity about the powers and rights that were not mentioned in the document. Many people were worried that the federal government would take all the powers not mentioned in the Constitution and infringe the people's rights that were not specified in the document. The Bill of Rights cleared up some of that ambiguity by specifying rights that could not be violated and indicated that all powers not mentioned in the Constitution belonged to the states. It was passed by Congress just six months after the Constitution went into force and was ratified two years later. The Bill of Rights helped to unify the new union of states and kept the country together for more than 60 years. | |||||
| 2 | Protects the right to keep and bear arms. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 3 | Prohibits soldiers from staying in private homes without the owner's consent (during peacetime). | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 4 | Prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures; requires probable cause for warrants. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice | 5 | Right to due process; no self-incrimination or double jeopardy; rules for grand jury and eminent domain | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice | |
| 6 | Fair, speedy and public trial; trial by jury; notification of accusations; right to confront the accuser and obtain witnesses; counsel. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 7 | Right to jury trial for civil cases over $20; follow common law in any reexamination of facts. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 8 | Prohibits excessive fines, excessive bail, and cruel and unusual punishment. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 9 | Unenumerated rights that are retained by the people are not abridged when the Constitution recognizes other rights. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 10 | Powers not granted to the federal government by the Constitution belong to the States or the people. | September 25, 1789 | December 15, 1791 | Liberty and justice; State sovereignty | ||||||
| 11 | States are immune from suits from out-of-state citizens and foreigners. | March 4, 1794 | February 7, 1795 | Procedural; State sovereignty | ||||||
| 12 | Update Electoral College procedures. | December 9, 1803 | June 15, 1804 | Procedural | ||||||
| 13 | Abolished slavery. | January 31, 1865 | December 6, 1865 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 14 | Defined citizenship; Extended protection of rights over State powers (Privileges and Immunities Clause, Due Process Clause, Equal Protection Clause); Reconstruction. | June 13, 1866 | July 9, 1868 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 15 | Black suffrage. Because of Jim Crow laws, it would be nearly 100 years before this amendment was in full effect. (Mississippi held its congressional elections in Decemeber 1, 1869, so this amendment didn't effect blacks in Mississippi until subsequent elections.) | February 26, 1869 | February 3, 1870 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 16 | Income tax. | July 12, 1909 | February 3, 1913 | Power grab | ||||||
| 17 | Direct election of Senators. Because of the staggered elections for the three classes of Senators, this amendment didn't effect all Citizens until the elections in 1918.) | May 13, 1912 | April 8, 1913 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 18 | Prohibition of alcohol. Took effect in 1920. | December 18, 1917 | January 16, 1919 | Power grab | ||||||
| 19 | Women suffrage. | June 4, 1919 | August 18, 1920 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 20 | Changed the dates of the start of the terms of the President and Vice President. The first presidential term effected by the amendment started on January 20, 1937. | March 2, 1932 | January 23, 1933 | Procedural. | ||||||
| 21 | Repealed Prohibition. | February 20, 1933 | December 5, 1933 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 22 | Term limits for President. | March 24, 1947 | February 27, 1951 | Procedural. | ||||||
| 23 | Electoral College for Washington, D.C. First used in the 1964 election. | June 16, 1960 | March 29, 1961 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 24 | Eliminates the poll tax. | September 14, 1962 | January 23, 1964 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 25 | Update procedures for presidential succession. | July 6, 1965 | February 10, 1967 | Procedural | ||||||
| 26 | Right to vote for eighteen-year-olds. | March 23, 1971 | July 1, 1971 | Liberty and justice | ||||||
| 27 | Raises for representatives don't take effect until after a Congressional election. | September 25, 1789 | May 7, 1992 | Procedural |
