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The Constitution of the United States was adopted on September 17, 1787 and was amended in 1791 with the Bill of Rights, which is the first ten amendments. The Bill of Rights was added so that the voice of the people of this country would be heard instead of an iron-fisted government ruling with no idea of the desires of the people. The First Amendment prohibits the making of any law “respecting an establishment of religion,” impeding the free exercise of religion, abridging the freedom of speech, infringing on the freedom of the press, interfering with the right to peaceably assemble or prohibiting the petitioning for a governmental redress of grievances.I was looking for more information and found it here. Arguably, the most enjoyed and quoted right of the First Amendment is the right to free speech. The right to free speech is not an absolute freedom however. Throughout history, the Supreme Court has ruled that a citizens right to free speech may not go so far as to infringe on the rights of others. A good example of this is a person’s right to privacy. Judge Oliver Wendall Holmes famously said that falsely shouting “Fire” in a crowded theater is not a protected action under the First Amendment because it unnecessarily puts others’ lives at risk. This ruling also extends to protect the secrets of the military during times of war for the same reason. We have enjoyed free speech for over two hundred years, so is this a modern issue? Surprisingly, the right to free speech is still hotly contested in courts to this day. The Freedom of Information Act is a great example. Enacted in 1996 the Freedom of Information Act makes it possible for any citizen to request specific information from press and governmental agencies in the interest of making information public. The First Amendment is as relevant today as it ever was in American history.