Between the linesThe First 10 amendments

to the Constitution of theUnited States were ratifiedas a group on Dec. 15, 1791and are known as the Bill ofRights.

These amendments limitthe powers of the federalgovernment, protecting therights of the people by pre-venting Congress fromabridging freedom ofspeech, freedom of thepress, freedom of assembly,freedom of religious wor-ship, the freedom to peti-tion, and the right to keepand bear arms.

Other protections includepreventing unreasonablesearch and seizure, crueland unusual punishment, andself-incrimination, and guar-anteeing due process of lawand a speedy public trialwith an impartial jury.

Cartoons for the Classroom is available through Newspaper in Education programs. Copyright Online Publications Inc. and NIEonline.com

Cartoons for the ClassroomPresented by NIEonline.com and the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists (AAEC)

Get out your newspaperGather a collection of politicalcartoons from your newspaperdealing with rights and liberties.Using the Cartoon EvaluationWorksheet (available online atthe NIE Website) analyze eachcartoon and explain the issuesaddressed and determine theartist’s point of view.

Talking points1. Is the political phrase Nick Anderson skewers in his cartoon true? Shouldwe worry? What should innocent people fear if we lose the protections out-lined in The Bill of Rights? Why were rights like protection against unrea-sonable search and seizure specifically written into the Bill of Rights? 2. Read the Fourth Amendment in the Bill of Rights and explain how itapplies to the scene in the cartoon. What is the difference between powerand authority? Are these agents using power or authority?3. Is protection against racial and ethnic profiling (Driving While Black,Flying While Arab) specifically prohibited in the Bill of Rights? Is it implied?Explain what “profiling” means. Is it ever permissible for the government touse profiling to prevent a crime?

Cartoon Courtesy Nick Anderson / Printed in the Houston Chronicle

Bill of Rights Day is December 15

“If you’re not doing anythingwrong, you need not worry.”

More by Nick Anderson: http://editorialcartoonists.com/cartoon/browse.cfm/AnderN

Additional resourcesAssociation of American Editorial Cartoonists http://editorialcartoonists.com/

Bill of Rights resourceshttp://www.billofrightsinstitute.org/BorDay/