Citizen rights

The basic rights of a United States citizen are outlined in the Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments in the United States Constitution. The First Amendment guarantees freedom of speech, the press, religion, and of assembly, and also grants the right to petition the government; the Second Amendment states that "[a] well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed"; the Ninth Amendment provides that rights granted in the Constitution shall not infringe other rights; and the Tenth Amendment provides that powers not granted by the Constitution to the federal government belong to the states or the people. The Fourth through the Eighth amendments deal with legal protections for citizens suspected of or accused of crimes.

Read a concise explanation of how these foundational rights came to be and what they consist of at the link below.

https://www.us-immigration.com/bill-of-rights/

Since the Bill of Rights, 17 more amendments have been added to the Constitution. Some of the most important dealing with the rights of citizens are the 13th, which outlawed slavery; the 14th, which guarantees due process and the equal protection of law; the 15th, which gave all adult males the right to vote regardless of race, color, or whether they had been slaves; the 19th, which gave all adult females the right to vote; the 24th, which abolished the poll taxes that had prevented some citizens from voting; and the 26th, which set the national voting age at 18. Learn more about amendments 11 through 27 at the following link.

http://www.ducksters.com/history/us_constitution_amendments.php