According to natural rights theory, as described by philosophers such as John Locke, everyone is born with an equality of certain rights, regardless of their nationality. Since they come from nature or from God, natural rights cannot be justly taken away without consent. As the Declaration of Independence asserts, natural (or “inalienable”) rights include “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Other natural rights are protected in the Bill of Rights, including freedom of speech, religion, and press.
The Founders believed that it is an important purpose of government to protect peoples’ natural rights. Thomas Jefferson wrote in the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom that infringements of conscience were a violation of natural rights; James Madison included protections from government abridgement of natural rights in the Bill of Rights. Belief in natural rights theory led many Founders, notably James Otis, to denounce slavery as a violation of natural rights. The Ninth Amendment addresses those natural rights not specifically listed in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, but which the people retain.
Later documents, including the Declaration of Sentiments and Resolutions, and Letter from Birmingham Jail, refer to natural rights as the basis for protesting unjust treatment of women and African Americans.
Natural rights theory is a foundation for constitutional principles such as judicial protection of rights and majority rule versus minority rights, and civic values like respect and responsibility.
Link:
http://billofrightsinstitute.org/resources/educator-resources/americapedia/americapedia-constitution/natural-rights/
Unalienable and Natural Rights
These are rights that all people have at birth. The government does not grant these rights, and therefore no government can take them away. The Declaration of Independence says that among these rights are “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
The U.S. Constitution does not mention “unalienable” or “natural rights.” But the first 10 amendments to the Constitution list the basic rights of Americans. These amendments are known as the Bill of Rights. The amendments contain many, many rights, including:.
Freedom:
of religion
of speech
of the press
to assemble
to complain to the Government
to keep and bear Arms
to a speedy and public trial
to bail
to an impartial jury
to be informed of what crime you are accused of
to be confronted with the witnesses against him
to be able to call witnesses in your favor
to have a lawyer.
Protection from:
being forced to have soldiers live in your home
“unreasonable searches and seizures”
being tried twice for the same crime
being a witness against yourself
having your life, liberty, or property taken “without due process of law”
having your private property taken “without just compensation”
excessive fines
“cruel and unusual punishments”
This is a long list of rights. But the Bill of Rights states that just because it has created this list, the list does not include all the rights that we have. It says the people have other rights as well. In fact, the Constitution only gives the government the powers listed in it. All other powers belong to the people.
Link:
http://www.crfcelebrateamerica.org/index.php/ideas/53-unalienable-and-natural-rights
"CERTAIN UNALIENABLE RIGHTS"
Democracy and liberty are often thought to be the same thing, but they are not. Democracy means that people ought to be able to vote for public officials in fair elections, and make most political decisions by majority rule. Liberty, on the other hand, means that even in a democracy, individuals have rights that no majority should be able to take away.
The rights that the Constitution's framers wanted to protect from government abuse were referred to in the Declaration of Independence as "unalienable rights." They were also called "natural" rights, and to James Madison, they were "the great rights of mankind." Although it is commonly thought that we are entitled to free speech because the First Amendment gives it to us, this country's original citizens believed that as human beings, they were entitled to free speech, and they invented the First Amendment in order to protect it. The entire Bill of Rights was created to protect rights the original citizens believed were naturally theirs, including:
FREEDOM OF RELIGION
The right to exercise one's own religion, or no religion, free from any government influence or compulsion
FREEDOM OF SPEECH, PRESS, PETITION & ASSEMBLY
Even unpopular expression is protected from government suppression or censorship
PRIVACY
The right to be free of unwarranted and unwanted government intrusion into one's personal and private affairs, papers, and possessions.
DUE PROCESS OF LAW
The right to be treated fairly by the government whenever the loss of liberty or property is at stake.
EQUALITY BEFORE THE LAW
The right to be treated equally before the law, regardless of social status
"AN IMPENETRABLE BULWARK" OF LIBERTY
The Bill of Rights established soaring principles that guaranteed the most fundamental rights in very general terms. But from the beginning, real live cases arose that raised difficult questions about how, and even if, the Bill of Rights would be applied. Before the paper rights could become actual rights, someone had to interpret what the language of the Bill of Rights meant in specific situations. Who would be the final arbiter of how the Constitution should be applied?
Link:
https://www.aclu.org/racial-justice_prisoners-rights_drug-law-reform_immigrants-rights/bill-rights-brief-history
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