The Bill of Rights Month

"All power in human hands is liable to be abused." — James Madison

Although James Madison is often referred to as the "Father of the Constitution" for his success in shepherding the document through its various stages to ratification, he was also wary of the powers this document granted to the newly formed government. Madison, along with Thomas Jefferson, wanted to protect fundamental human liberties such as freedom of speech that he believed could be abridged by the government. This month EDSITEment focuses on Madison's Bill of Rights, a series of amendments that secure human liberties and impose further checks and balances upon the power of the federal government.

James Madison's inspiration to write a bill of rights was the anti-Federalists, a group of men who opposed the Constitution. He agreed with the famous patriot Patrick Henry and other anti-Federalists who argued that such a bill was necessary to protect citizens from the tyranny that the colonists experienced under the rule of King George III and to state the limitations of the government's power. Anti-Federalists also criticized the Constitution for its vagueness and demanded that a Constitution be written that concisely stated the rights of the American people.

Virginian delegate James Madison believed that the bill of rights would ensure the acceptance of the Constitution by both the Federalists and anti-Federalists. Moreover, he believed the bill would inspire citizens to unite against any future attempts of government to infringe upon natural rights. On October 31, 1788, Madison wrote that the bill would be "a good ground for an appeal to the sense of community" and would "counteract the impulses of interest and passion."

As a new representative to the First Federal Congress, Madison worked diligently to convince the House to ratify the amendments. He persuaded Congress to consider 17 amendments after suppressing the anti-Federalists' objections to the Constitution. Later, the Senate trimmed the list of amendments to 12, and on December 15, 1791, ten amendments were ratified by three-fourths of the states. These ten amendments are known in present times as the "Bill of Rights." Today, this bill serves not only as a protector of American rights but also as a source of controversy as citizens continually attempt to stretch its limitations to include a wider range of freedoms.

For additional information on the history and content of the Bill of Rights, visit the Bills of Rights Page or read the article "A More Perfect Union: The Creation of the U.S. Constitution" available through the EDSITEment-reviewed website The Digital Classroom from the National Archives and Records Administration.

EDSITEment offers several resources you can use to teach your students the history of the Bill of Rights (accessible through CongressLink) and its importance to American life. Lesson two of the lesson plan, In Congress Assembled,from the Library of Congress American Memory Project, investigates reasons for the inclusion of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution.

EDSITEment's CongressLink lesson plan "Teaching the Amendments" teaches students about the Bill of Rights through the use of Internet sources and stimulating activities. EDSITEment has several additional resources that discuss the implications of specific amendments in the Bill of Rights: a lesson plan on Regulating Freedom of Speech and a lesson plan on human rights available through the National Archives Digital Classroom, Documents and Photographs Related to Japanese Relocation During WWII.