Nature of the Bill of Rights

ARTICLE III - BILL OF RIGHTS

Nature of the Bill of Rights

   A bill of rights consists of the declaration of the inalienable fundamental rights which a person is constitutionally entitled to enjoy as a human being and which are protected against the invasion by the government and by the members of the community.

   These fundamental rights contained in the Bill of Rights constitute the charter of individual liberties which inheres in the great and essential principles of liberty and free government.

The bill of rights are considered limitations on governmental powers and prerogatives; that is to say, these rights cannot be taken away by the government which is duty bound to protect them. So that beyond this constitutional constraints no transgression of any sort will be permitted. This is so because the Bill of Rights is designed to preserve the ideals of liberty and security against the "assaults of opportunism, the expediency of passing the hour the erosion of small encroachments, and the scorn and derision of those who have the patience with general principles."

The purpose of the Bill of Rights is to withdraw "certain subjects from the vicissitudes of political controversy, to place  them beyond the reach of majorities and officials, and to establish them as legal principles to be applied by the courts. One's right to life, liberty and property, to free speech, or free press, freedom of worship and assembly, and other fundamental rights may not be submitted to a vote. They depend on the outcome of no elections.