Restrictions on Civil Liberties
History of U.S. Policy
The conflict between civil liberties and national security is as old as the Nation itself. The following chronicles laws and executive decisions during times of war and other threats, real or imagined, to American society. Early Years of the Republic 1791 — The Bill of Rights. The Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, is ratified by the States. It provides legal protection for basic civil rights and becomes the symbol and substance of American conceptions of individual liberty, limited government, and the rule of law. 1878 — Alien and Sedition Acts. Congress passes the Alien and…
