1. What are rights and where do they come from????

2. Read the scenarios and discuss.
Theme of activity—the need to balance individual liberty with the well-being of society
Rights are NOT absolute but must be balanced against societal needs
Scenario 1: Right of free speech vs. the need to maintain safe schools
Scenario 2: Right of free speech vs. the right of other students to an environment free of fear and discrimination
Scenario 3: Right to be secure from unreasonable searches and seizures vs. the need to protect students from harm
Scenario 4: Right to be secure from unreasonable searches and seizures vs. the need to protect citizens from harm

3. Where do our rights come from?
Natural Rights: Those that a person is born with, rather than granted by a government or ruler
Legal Rights: Those that have been defined by constitutional provisions, laws, and court decisions

4. What rights are people born with?

5. Does it matter if our rights are codified?
In the past, oral tradition or oral law has been used to create governments and law
Codify- turn into a set of written rules or laws
Rights of people in the United States are codified in the U.S. Constitution
Constitution: written document articulating the purpose, structure, powers, and limitations of a government

6. The Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights is part of the Constitution and is NOT a separate legal document.
The founders strongly disagreed over whether the U.S. needed a list of rights added to the Constitution.
Those who did not want a Bill of Rights were afraid of leaving something out. They worried that listing a few specific rights would imply that those were the only rights protected by the Constitution.
People who wanted a Bill of Rights believed that it was important to list the rights the founders felt most strongly about, to make sure that they were protected.
The preamble

7. Two kinds of rights
Positive Rights: require action or initiative to ensure that your right is protected; they are rules the require the state to provide individuals with a benefit (ex. Right to education)
Negative Rights: prevent a person from doing something that would deprive another person of a right; they are rules that keep the state from depriving individuals of liberty (ex. Freedom of Speech)

8. Functional Document Document that communicates everyday information
Car manual
Codes of Conduct

9. Contemporary Laws Laws that reflect modern issues
What are some examples?