We the People

From Herald Gazette: We the People

We are in the middle of Constitution Week, and it is a great time study and discuss one of the bedrock documents of the United States.

The Daughters of the American Revolution originally petitioned for a Constitution Week to promote the study and education of the Constitution. Presidents Dwight Eisenhower and George W. Bush both took actions to make the week official.

Our lives are affected every day by the Constitution when we exercise freedom of religion, the right to keep and bear arms, enjoy freedom of speech, are secure from unreasonable searches and seizures, and vote. But the week of Sept. 17 to Sept. 23 is a dedicated time of reflection.

“The United States of America functions as a Republic under the Constitution, which is the oldest document still in active use that outlines the self-government of a people,” notes the Daughters of the American Revolution. “This landmark idea that men had the inalienable right as individuals to be free and live their lives under their own governance was the impetus of the American Revolution. Today, the Constitution stands as an icon of freedom for people around the world.”

Several websites offer Constitution Week quizzes. We invite readers to check out constitutionfacts.com to test their knowledge.

Here are a few sample quiz questions:

Invoking the Fifth Amendment means an accused man:

A — Refuses to testify against himself.
B — Refuses to be tried again
C — Demands a grand jury.
D — Wants to appeal his case.

The answer is A. "No person shall... be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation."

Prior to the ratification of the 19th Amendment in 1920, what was true?


A — Women did not have the right to vote for president.
B — Women in certain states had the right to vote for president.
C — All women had the right to vote for president.
D — Women married to landowners had the right to vote for president.

The answer is B. Women in certain states had the right to vote for president. Arizona, Alaska, Oregon and California had given women the right to vote before 1920.

The Constitution enumerates our rights, but if we want to fully exercise them and challenge those who would infringe upon them, we must take refresher courses and remember:

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”