Research Paper on:
Protection for the Rights of the Individual in the U.S. Constitution

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
long as we have the money, we can purchase just about everything. Its believed that the U.S. Constitution has helped citizens gain and maintain many of those rights.  Property rights for all, however, are a relatively recent concept. The rights of the individual were always guaranteed by the Constitution - that is,  if said individual was a white man over the age of 21. The Constitution did guarantee that the state could not just seize property. When it came to women and  people of color, however, this concept seemed somewhat exempt. Each of the following sections will outline the basis of the amendment, some  history about the amendment and how the amendment addressed individual rights of women, white males and people of color. Fifth Amendment These  days, mostly everyone associates the Fifth Amendment with the right not to have to incriminate oneself in the crime - this is known as "taking the fifth" (and more often  than not, it implies guilt, rather than supporting the right against self-incrimination). This amendment also guarantees a right to a speedy trial by a Grand Jury for a capital crime  and prohibits someone from being tried twice for the same crime (Findlaw.com (a), 2002). In addition, this amendment states that no private property should be taken for public use without  just compensation (Findlaw.com (a), 2002). Likely as not, this latter was directed against the British, for their "quartering" act prior to the Revolutionary War, in which Redcoats could simply take  over peoples homes at will, and with no compensation. It seems, however, that this did not hold true for people of color