The Free Exercise Of Religion Essay

Dress codes violate the first amendment. Students should have the ability to express themselves as it is their right to do so, but schools are prohibiting them from being able to express themselves. In the article Are Student Dress Codes a Violation of Civil Rights, Yates Kimberly claims, “If a school district can show that political

The First Amendments is a blessing that the United States is fortunate enough to have. First and foremost, First Amendment protects the right to freedom of religion and expression, without any government interference ("First Amendment" n.p.). The freedom of expression includes the right to free speech, press, assembly, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances ("First Amendment" n.p.). Redress of grievances guarantees people the right to ask the government to provide relief for a wrong through courts or other governmental action ("First Amendment" n.p.). People are allowed to practice their own religions and do not have to conform to one religion, all because of the First Amendment. People's rights are protected with no government interference.

President Ronald Reagan said “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it down to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.” As citizens of America, it is our responsibility to keep the freedoms we have thriving in our everyday lives. Among these are the initial rights given to Americans in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights. Of these five freedoms, three are constant in our everyday lives. The freedom of religion, the freedom of press, and the freedom of speech.

America, the “land of the free, and home of the brave.” Unfortunately, this doesn 't mean “land of the free to wear whatever one desires.” In fact, school dress codes are taking away American students’ self expression, infringing on their freedom of speech, and enforcing sexist discrimination all over the country. A recent case, that occurred at Tottenville High School in Staten Island, New York, blatantly displays the negative effects dress codes are having on students, especially females. In the first couple of days of the semester, this high school managed to give 200 detentions to students for violating the dress code. Ironically enough, 90 percent of these students were girls (Swafford). The discouraging part is that schools are easily able to get away with this kind of discrimination. This is made possible by state laws that give school boards the power to enforce whatever dress codes they think are necessary to promote a distraction free learning environment, maintain discipline, and to push students to dress similarly in order to create a uniformity in the schools (“School Dress Codes”). The purpose of dress codes may be to create a distraction free learning environment; in reality, however, they produce an environment where students feel discriminated against and aren 't free to express themselves.

America has been named the "melting pot" of the world. It houses many different cultures, nationalities, ideas and religions. There are Christians, Jews, Catholics, Buddhists, Mormons, Hindus, Spiritualists, Jehovah's Witnesses, Islamic, plus many more. America is unique in that all these religions are represented in a nation that is only 200 years old. And America has upheld, throughout history, that the freedom and equality of religion is extremely important in order for this nation to function as a free nation. The foundations of America were set as a result of England's persecution; more specifically, England's religious persecution. The colonists wanted to create a nation that allowed people to be free. They

The fight for religious freedom in America is tough for people who do not participate in the religion known as Christianity. Since America is a large and culturally diverse land, the United States of America’s government has to be religiously tolerant to every belief system. Throughout America's lifespan, the subject matter “Freedom of Religion” has increasingly gained attention from the American Act. Thecitizens. In order to protect the religious liberties of American citizens the government has put into place a free exercise clause in the year of 1878, this allowed American citizens to practice religion freely in America. However, many issues have risen and promoted the creation of America's Religious Freedom Act.The largest issue surrounding religious freedom in

“...the state, in the form of the public school system, cannot legally tell students what to wear..” (Source 1). When the district school board is determining what students can and cannot wear it violates the First Amendment. Taking away a person’s right is not only is illegal but wrong. Students maintain a certain amount constitutional rights when they are in school, their decision about what they wear is protected as well.

Countless Americans today don’t appreciate our nations bill of rights that our founding fathers included into our nation's constitution protects our own rights. Of all the 10 amendments in the bill of rights the 1st amendment protects our personal rights the most. The first amendment established the right for all Americans to have the freedom of religion, speech, and the press. This amendment essentially forbids the government from restricting an citizen from its own free exercise of religion, impeding one's right of freedom of speech, and to restrict the freedoms of the press. In this essay I will talk about why this amendment is so important to American citizens rights.

The First Amendment of the United States Constitution grants United States Citizens the right to freedom of religion (Horwitz 1). According to Supreme Court interpretation, the primary purpose of this amendment is to prevent government interference with the practice of religion. Since the 1950's this amendment has been slowly worn away, resulting in the government limiting its citizens' rights to freely pray, worship, and even proselytize. While various laws are often struck down in the Supreme Court, this process takes time and damage is done to freedom while awaiting the decision.

Of all the freedom listed in the Amendment, I personally believe that those granted in the first amendment are the most important. The first amendment remains the most powerful tool for protecting the freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, and petition for Americans today. The first amendment allows citizen to worship whatever Religion they please without interference from the government. With freedom of speech citizens are given the right to voice their opinion publicly without the fear of getting punished. Freedom of the press allows citizens to broadcast and publish truthful report without interference from the government. Freedom of assembly gives citizens the right to hold meetings in public and not be questioned. Freedom of petition

As citizens of the United States, we have certain unalienable rights that were set by the framers of our country back when our nation’s government was just forming. Among these is the First Amendment to the Constitution that includes the freedom of religion for all who reside in and call this country their own. The First Amendment is meant to give rights to the people that the government cannot limit or take away. These rights serve to protect and help us in times of need, and the freedom of religion that the United States provides has given security to members of all religious backgrounds coming from other countries where this freedom is not among the rights given to their people. People all over the world have sought refuge in

Many people come to the United States looking for freedom and liberty and where their essential rights are protected under the Constitution. However, freedom should not be taken for granted as for every rule there may be limits. The First Amendment of the United States’ Constitution states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances” (Corwin 48). In other words, the First Amendment granted freedom of religion, speech, press, peaceful assembly, and petition. The First Amendment is clear enough for anyone to comprehend and process easily; however, people sometimes misunderstand their rights by doing what their First Amendment right does not protect, especially when it comes to freedom of speech. Seven of the most important law cases in the United States’ history are what shaped the American’s society and allowed people to hopefully know and recognize their limits and restrictions when it comes to their speech whether it was a literal speech or a symbolic speech.

As an educator, it is extremely important to know educational policies. On top of the knowledge, it is also imperative to respect the rights granted to students in the democratic society. Attached above is an article, published by the first amendment center, regarding how the first amendment is employed within public schools. The first topic in the article is titled speaking out in school. Here I learned that the school cannot limit the student’s freedom of speech, unless it is hindering the environment to learn, and even then, there is a lot of grey area. Here the school must be able to provide substantial evidence that the student’s writing, speech, or expression would cause great disruption. This also ties directly into school dress code and uniforms required by the school corporation. Students, in many

The United States of America was founded with a credo of religious freedom. They hoped to change the vicious cycle of religious persecution and intolerance that had been swirling through Europe for centuries. Over the last two hundred years this legacy has been shredded and stained. Our religious freedoms have been taken away by people who have twisted what our country was founded to protect.

Dress code restricts students from first amendment rights. All citizens have freedom of expression stated in the first amendment (“School”). Clothing choice is an important form of self expression, and rejecting it actually slows teenagers emotional development (“School”). When teachers and administration force students to dress the same and follow the dress code rules,it suggesting that students are not trusted to make their own decisions,and gives them a feeling of being not trustworthy (“School”). Telling all students to dress the same or similar restricts them from being individual and having their own sense of style and creativity (“School”). Dress code violates the first amendment rights all students should have, students are people too. Clothing choice is so important because it expresses the students’ personalities and personal styles. When the students’ have no opportunity to be creative and have their own sense of style, they are missing something very important. Everyone needs to be able to have a form of self expression to express themselves. With dress codes in schools, students cannot be themselves. So, dress code negatively affects the school