Citizenship: The Rights, Duties and Responsibilities of the Office

Rights of Citizens are guaranteed by the Constitution Right to vote and to hold office Right to say what you think in speech or in writing Right to practice your own religion Right to have a FAIR trial Right to be protected while in other countries

Duties of Citizens OBEYING the LAW Societies formal rules are called laws Laws Keep us from hurting each other Establish rules for making agreements and settling disputes Protect citizen’s rights Officials must base their decisions on the law, not personal opinion Citizens must know the laws RULE OF LAW NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW (Not even the PRESIDENT!)

Duties of Citizens Defending the Nation Duty to defend the nation Register for military service Men only 18th Birthday Called to duty in a national emergency

Duties of Citizens Serving on a Jury Serving as a Witness Citizens have a right to a fair trial Anyone that is accused of a crime may have their case decided by a jury of their peers (JURY OF PEERS is a group of ordinary citizens who hear a case and decide whether the accused person is innocent or guilty Serving as a Witness Witnesses – people who have seen events related to the crime or who have special information that may help determine to guilt or innocence of the person on trial

Duties of Citizens Paying TAXES Through Taxes our local, state and national governments raise money to pay for services that citizens ask them to provide…what do you think the government provides citizens?

Some services include…

Duties of Citizens Attending School Society depends on schools to make sure that young people are prepared for the future Schools give students the knowledge, skills and experience they need to carry on the duties and responsibilities of the “office of citizen”

Responsibilities of Citizens Working toward a common good, what is that??? COMMON GOOD: the well being of all members of society Act in ways that protect the rights and freedoms of other Americans Make your communities a good place to live

Responsibilities of Citizens Learn about issues and take part in the government VOTE This is the basic rights of American citizens and one of our most important responsibilities This is what sets us apart from many other forms of government

Responsibilities of Citizens Holding Government Offices Citizens who hold elected offices accept the responsibility of learning about the issues and trying to make decisions that are best for the people they represent

Responsibilities of Citizens Participate in election campaigns Another way to fulfill your responsibilities of citizenship it to help a candidate (a person who is running for office)

Responsibilities of Citizens Influence Government by expressing your opinions Persuade government to take action regarding a cause you believe in Express our opinion in letters to the editor of your local newspaper Fight for a cause Become a delegate

Responsibilities of Citizens Serving the Community It is your responsibility to do whatever you can to make our communities better places to live Obey the laws Keep the city clean Volunteer