The Rights Not Listed in the U.S. Constitution

The Framers drafted the Bill of Rights to protect individual liberty from government encroachment.  Although the Framers listed specific rights in the first eight amendments of the U.S. Constitution, the 9th Amendment makes clear that these “enumerated” rights are not a complete list of all rights the Constitution protects. Following the Civil War, another rights-protecting provision, the Privileges or Immunities Clause, was added to the Constitution as part of the 14th Amendment. The 9th Amendment and the Privileges or Immunities Clause both protect liberties such as the right to earn an honest living. These so-called “unenumerated” rights are every bit as much a part of the Constitution as specifically enumerated rights, and Institute for Justice Attorneys Clark Neily and Robert McNamara discuss why the rights not listed in the Constitution must be protected by the courts.

 

Guests: IJ Attorneys Clark Neily and Robert McNamara
Host: Shira Rawlinson
Length: 24:05
Date: January 2012

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