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Freedom Forum: First Amendment Struggles & Triumphs

For Students 9th - 10th
Find out how the First Amendment serves citizens in real life by reading about Daniel Ellsberg, Mary Beth Tinker, and Alton T. Lemon, all of whom were principal litigants in landmark Supreme Court cases regarding the freedom of expression.
Primary
Teaching American History

Teaching American History: The Four Freedoms

For Students 9th - 10th
A transcribed portion of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's address to Congress on January 6, 1941.
Handout
The History Cat

The History Cat: u.s. History: The Civil Rights Movement

For Students 9th - 10th
Outlines Martin Luther King, Jr.'s work as a civil rights leader from the beginning of the Montgomery Bus Boycott in 1955 up until his assassination in Memphis on April 4, 1968. Describes the different protest movements, including the...
Website
Other

Cpsr: Cyber Rights

For Students 9th - 10th
CPSR offers an informative discussion of current legal and policy topics hosted by group working for rights of assembly and speech for online communities.
Lesson Plan
National Endowment for the Humanities

Neh: Edsit Ement: The First Amendment

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
This resource presents lessons on the First Amendment. It contains many resources for use with children, and links to primary source documents.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Teachers: Foreign War and Domestic Freedom: (Civil Liberties Lesson Plan)

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A lesson plan that directs students to review the concept of civil liberties and to examine examples from American history wherein rights were restricted. They will investigate key arguments between those who seek to restrict liberties...
Website
Digital History

Digital History: A Bill of Rights? [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
There was no Bill of Rights attached to the original Constitution, but it was a topic of discussion. Read a reconstruction of speeches of delegates to the Constitutional Convention who debated for and against the inclusion of a way to...
Activity
Other

Common Sense Americanism: Schenck v. United States

For Students 9th - 10th
This summary provides the background for Schenck v. United States, a World War I-era Supreme Court case involving free speech. Schenck is an example of what can happen to basic constitutional rights in time of war.
Article
US Department of State

U.s. Dept. Of State: 2018 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: China

For Students 9th - 10th
A comprehensive account of human rights practices in China for the year 2018. Per the US Department of State, China's "human rights record remained poor and worsened in some areas." Sections of the report include: Arbitrary or Unlawful...
Handout
Other

The Stoa Consortium: Classical Athenian Democracy [Pdf]

For Students 9th - 10th
Extensive descriptions of all facets of the Athenian Assembly - membership, freedom of speech, exclusion, payment, meeting places, schedule of meetings, the conduct of the meetings, voting, foreign affairs, and their decision making in...
Primary
Other

Office of Public Sector Information: Human Rights Act 1998

For Students 9th - 10th
The Human Rights Act 1998 is published online including an interactive contents list, allowing you to go straight to particular sections.
eBook
Annenberg Foundation

Annenberg Classroom: Our Rights

For Students 9th - 10th
This book uses historical case studies to explore the rights in the Constitution. Supreme Court cases are used to demonstrate how a right received its modern interpretation, how the right applies today, and how courts and other...
Primary
Boston College

Boston College: Feiner v. New York

For Students 9th - 10th
Read the text of court opinions regarding the 1951 Feiner v. New York Case. Includes footnotes to Justice Hugo Black's opinion.
Activity
Other

Freedom Forum: What Is the Fighting Words Doctrine?

For Students 9th - 10th
A good summary of the "Fighting Words Doctrine" which was first articulated in the Supreme Court Case of Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire. Contains links to case summaries.
Website
New York Times

New York Times: Cyber Law Journal

For Students 9th - 10th
Cyber Law Journal, a weekly publication of the New York Times, reflects on the legal issues raised by the Internet.
Unit Plan
Other

Syracuse University: Project Legal: Compu Legal: Feiner v New York

For Students 9th - 10th
This site contains information and the court ruling in the Supreme Court case of Feiner v. New York. Includes a cartoon about the case. Follow through the tutorial to eventually come to the outcome of the case.
Handout
Wikimedia

Wikipedia: Defamation

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn what defamation is, and explore the legal differences between slander and libel. Other concepts include "false light" and "absolute privilege." Also looks at legal defenses used and defamation laws in other countries.
Activity
PBS

Pbs Online News Hour: Virtual Victory?

For Students 9th - 10th
Discussion of the implications of the Supreme Court ruling against the constitutionality of the Communications Decency Act, including give and take on the meaning of the decision for children. Includes transcript of discussion, and link...
Unit Plan
CommonLit

Common Lit: "I Have a Dream" by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
King delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech to over 250,000 people from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on August 28, 1963. In this speech, King discusses racial...
Handout
Nobel Media AB

The Nobel Prize: The Nobel Peace Prize 1975

For Students 9th - 10th
Read about the Soviet nuclear physicist, Andrei Dmitrievich Sakharov (1921-1989 CE), who received the 1974 Nobel Peace Prize for his "Struggle for human rights, for disarmament, and for cooperation between all nations." This website is...
Website
University of Virginia

Miller Center at Uva: u.s. Presidents: Franklin Delano Roosevelt

For Students 9th - 10th
Miller Center's American President project offers an exhaustive look at Franklin Delano Roosevelt the man, the politician, and national icon who guided the United States through the dark times of the Depression and World War II. Find his...
Unit Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Being a Leader

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Help your students think critically about the dynamic and changing nature of what it means to be a leader. Below you'll find resources that will assist and encourage your students to explore their value systems, promote positive...
Primary
American Rhetoric

American Rhetoric: Eleanor Roosevelt: The Struggle for Human Rights

For Students 9th - 10th
This is the text of Eleanor Roosevelt's speech "The Struggle for Human Rights," on the preservation of human freedom delivered on September 28, 1948, in Paris, France.
Article
CNN

Cnn: Bush: Iraq Is One Victory in the War on Terror

For Students 9th - 10th
Published on 5/02/2003, CNN describes the speech given by President Bush marking the end of combat operations in Iraq. The speech was given on an Aircraft Carrier outside of San Diego. You will be able to see a transcript of the speech,...

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