Name: Caitlyn G.
School: Sheridan High School
Age: 12th
October 15th, 2021
What does the US Constitution mean to me?
The twenty seven Amendments in the Constitution are important because it is our main
government. The Constitution is, “a body of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is acknowledged to be governed.” The most important Amendments to me are, Second Amendment, the Fourth Amendment, and the Ninth Amendment. The Second Amendment is the right to bear arms. Having the right to bear arms is important because having the right to hunt and provide for a family and/or to protect yourself is and should be an honor. Some people may abuse this privilege but on the other hand, others use it to their advantage. The Fourth Amendment is no unreasonable search or arrest. This is also important because the law shouldn’t have the right to search you or your property without a warrant. Having this as an Amendment, it is showing that the government cares about everybody’s privacy. The Fourth Amendment doesn’t protect all searches and arrests because sometimes it is very much needed. And finally, the Ninth Amendment. The Ninth Amendment is important because being able to have more rights than just the ones listed in the Constitution is showing how much freedom we have.
The Second Amendment has significance because bearing arms is useful to anyone. The
Second Amendment is primarily broken into two sections. The first part, “a well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State”. meaning people who have any form of arms in their possession shall not be infringed. The second part, “the ‘individual rights’ thesis emphasized the operative clause”. This Amendment has been challenged multiple times. Many people have tried to get this amendment taken off the Constitution. When this Amendment was first passed there were rules about what kind of arm you had and how long it was. The men who possessed these firearms were only to use them when asked to serve. Now, anybody can have any type or arm they want with a permit. With any other Amendment, it gets abused. Illegal transportation, buying and selling of any arm, and abuse of the weapon. From all the abuse, it is thought of as only bad when all of the good is covered.
No unreasonable searches or arrests is important to me because being able to have privacy is very important. Unreasonable searches can be and are very harmful. Being able to have at least some privacy is good. Having the right to keep to yourself and have the option to get a warrant is also important. More and more unreasonable searches and arrests have been happening everyday. The Constitution has been really kicked to the curb most recently. People have been beaten, arrested, and searched without reason. Sometimes, rights are forgotten. The Fourth Amendment is important because it protects me and others. There are two main interests with this Amendment. One side, “the scale is the intrusion on an individual’s Fourth Amendment rights”. The other side, “legitimate government interests, such as public safety”. Being searched or seized in your home is only allowed when it is lawful and/or the items are in plain sight. In person, the officer can question the suspect due to behavior but they can not just arrest because of a suspicion. Then, with cars, officers can lawfully search the vehicle that they believe contains evidence.
Finally, the Ninth Amendment is important because having more rights than the rights listed in the Constitution is important. If we only had the rights listed, we would seriously have to ask to get a drink of water or to go to bed. People getting rights not listed in the Constitution shows how much freedom we have in the United States. This Amendment affects us today because we can pretty much do anything we want if we don’t break the law or harm others. The Ninth Amendment has also affected today and past history by not being able to deny natural rights of the people. This is important to me because having freedom is important.
In conclusion, the three most important Amendments to me are the Second, Fourth, and Ninth Amendments. Without these Amendments, our freedom would be very limited which is why I think they are needed and important