Political Science

It is necessary for a country to have its own constitution as a symbol of freedom and sovereignty. The constitution balances the rights of citizens and the government. The Constitution contains all the basic rights of citizens. The goal of the constitution is equity under the law and equal opportunity.

Among the amendments that balances and equates the right of citizens is the Nineteenth Amendment. The Nineteenth Amendment or womens suffrage rights states that the right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. (The United States Constitution, 2009) The Declaration of Sentiments at the first womans right convention in Seneca Falls, New York in 1848 is considered as the beginning of the fight for womens suffrage. Four years after that, Susan Anthony argued during the Womans Right Convention held at Syracuse in 1852 that the right of women needed above every other was the right to vote.

Before the nineteenth amendment was ratified, the right of American women to vote had been non-existent. The best example is the case of Minor vs. Happersett. Mrs. Virginia Minor sued Happersett for willfully refusing her to be listed as a voter in the State of Missouri, thus, denying her the right to vote. Both the State Court of Missouri and the Supreme Court favored Happersett, stating that the Constitution of the United States does not confer the right of suffrage upon any one, and that the constitutions and laws of the several States which commit that important trust to men alone are not necessarily void.

Another example is the case against Susan Anthony for illegal voting. She registered as a voter in her hometown of Rochester, and on November 5, 1872 successfully casted her votes. Sylvester Lewis challenged Anthony in the court by arguing that Anthony has casted an illegal vote. In the end, the court, represented by Judge Hunt, sentenced Anthony to pay a fine of one hundred dollars and the costs of the prosecution. However, Anthony refused to pay the fine. This case started a urge of women protests in the United States demanding for equal voting rights with men in the Nineteenth Amendment.

The US Constitution treats all citizens of the United States equal in the exercise of law. The Fifteenth Amendment states that The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude. (The United States Constitution) This amendment is the third of the Reconstruction Amendments which is sometimes referred as the Civil War Amendments. This granted all citizens no matter what color, race or previous status they have the right of suffrage.

The Twenty-six Amendment illuminates the ideals of fairness and equality under the rule of law. It states that The right of citizens of the United States, who are eighteen years of age or older, to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of age. (The United States Constitution) Undeniably, this amendment exemplifies the role of the Constitution in our everyday life.

The Constitution, thus, is the basis of all the rights which every US citizen is enjoying. And as basis, the Constitution should be strictly followed and respected.