The daily lives of Americans are affected by the Constitution in numerous ways. The rights, freedoms, and governmental structure that the document defined 230 years ago are the the basis for our modern society.

The Founders’ vision was to create a for-the-people by-the-people government. We’re accustomed to the idea of separate branches of government providing checks and balances on each other, but that was an entirely novel concept at the time. For more than a decade, Madison’s research-oriented mind had been busy studying the successes and failures of other governments, and his 1787 Virginia Plan became the springboard for the Constitution.

Though most of us realize the importance of a constitution, many of us haven’t ever taken the time to read and understand our own. At a little more than 4,500 words, the U.S. Constitution isn’t long by global standards, but the prose can be dense and difficult to decipher. 

While the Constitution provides the structure of the government, Bill of Rights, the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, draws the lines that the government is prohibited from crossing. Even in its purest form, the concept of a “right” isn't always as simple to understand as it sounds. “A right is the ability to stop the government from doing something to you,” explains Stewart Harris, Visiting Associate Professor of Law at the Duncan School of Law at Lincoln Memorial University. In other words, the Bill of Rights doesn’t necessarily offer protection from employers or other individuals. 

“People today aren’t thinking about rights with the same fresh memory of the kinds of abuses that led to the adoption of the Constitution in 1787 or the ratification of the Bill of Rights in 1791,” explains David Rossman, Director of Criminal Law Clinical Programs and Professor of Law at the Boston University School of Law. “Today, we very often don’t realize that the rights that are set out in the Constitution are things that everyone relies on in order to go about their business with some sense of security.”

Where do one party's rights begin and another's end? That's why we have courts. It’s the judicial branch that interprets these rights and how they apply to individual situations, particularly as America has changed over the centuries, and will continue to change in the future.

The Constitution left many aspects of our governance and our rights intentionally vague, partially because it would have been impossible for the Framers to predict the evolution of society. While many of the issues we grapple with today have broad constitutional applications, the gray areas provide opportunities for deliberation and debate.

Constitutional issues continue to be at the forefront of social and political agendas, and it’s important we as citizens familiarize ourselves with both sides of major, modern constitutional arguments so that we can be as informed as possible about our rights, freedoms, and protections under the law. 

And win your next dinner table debate. 

At times in American history national security has had to be tightened, sometimes very quickly. This prompts a core constitutional question: how much liberty are we willing to give up in pursuit of safety?

Privacy isn’t specifically mentioned in the Constitution. With all the data being transferred and shared today, and the myriad ways to mine, analyze, and use said data, it’s an issue that didn’t exist in the analog world of the Founders. But is that spirit of privacy covered under other statements?

Does pornography get a free pass under freedom of speech protections? Does the 1st Amendment cover morality issues? Jacobellis v. Ohio (1964), set the precedent that hardcore pornography could be forbidden under state obscenity laws, but ordinary pornography was protected constitutionally. The definition of obscenity, like that of art, is left up to the judge.

In this case, it’s not about whether or not taking to the streets should be struck from the Constitution, but instead about the limits of assembly. The question, Peter Irons, Emeritus Professor of Political Science from the University of California San Diego, asks is, “What are the limits? Can you impose conditions on assembly to basically protect the rest of the public, and at the same time allow the protesters to express their messages?” 

It’s the answers to that question that present the quandary.

What "freedom" means in the context of the 1st Amendment will always be up for discussion. Where do one individual's freedoms end and another's begin? What type of materials are considered offensive? When is the government allowed to infringe upon personal freedoms to protect the republic? These ambiguities are left up to the interpretation of the courts, and will continue to shape social boundaries for years to come. 

Currently one of the most hotly-contested constitutional issues, the 2nd Amendment rears its head in nearly every political campaign. The near-constant barrage of gun violence in America keeps this at the forefront of debate across the country.

Court cases have varied in their interpretation of “well regulated militia,” “keep and bear arms,” and even “right of the people.” Alternate drafts of the amendment feature different punctuation and capitalization that have also played a part in trying to decipher the Founders’ intentions.

As Stewart Harris asks, “Is this a collective right involving militia, or is it an individual right to keep and bear arms? Do you read the two clauses together, or do you read them separately?”

District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), is considered a landmark case for firearm rights, with the Supreme Court ruling that bans on handguns are unconstitutional and that guns can be owned and used for lawful purposes by individuals unconnected with the military. However, with increased media coverage of large-scale shootings, such as the tragedies of Virginia Tech, Sandy Hook, and the Aurora movie theater, calls for gun control have become louder and more fervent.

The unpredictability of the evolution of society and how firearms have changed make for a significant debate surrounding the 2nd Amendment. This puts the courts in the position to evaluate and "update" their constitutional interpretation to adapt to contemporary issues. 

“Americans revere presidents who are heroic figures in our past,” says Russell Riley, Associate Professor and Co-Chair of the Presidential Oral History Program at the Miller Center at the University of Virginia. “But at the same time, perhaps our most fundamental governing principle is separation. Even in these instances where a president is leading us through a moment of great crisis, there is anxiety about the exercise of that power.”

Executive power has surged in the last two centuries, even though the only powers actually enumerated by the Constitution are the ones from Article II, Section 2. 

People are questioning whether or not we should dial back the de facto powers to a more stripped-down, constitutional version of the presidency, limiting her or him to military command, pardoning abilities, and appointment power.

John Hudak, the Deputy Director of the Center for Effective Public Management and Senior Fellow of Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution, insists that “If an American citizen doesn’t understand what a president is supposed to do and not supposed to do, they won’t be able to identify violations of law and violations of the Constitution.” 

After independence was declared in 1776, America failed in its attempt to function as a loose confederacy of sovereign states. The Articles of Confederation, the document which kept the states together but didn't provide any sort of federal structure, gave the young country no way to fund war debts, create a standing national army, or even support a common currency. James Madison saw this as an opportunity to create a federal Constitution, and ever since, we've debated whether we're the "United States" or the "United States."

A perfect example of the conflict between state policies and federalism is marijuana. Marijuana isn’t mentioned in the Constitution, and for the Founders, hemp was a useful component of rope and even clothes. Today, pot may be legal in several states, but because it is still a federal violation, it sets up a conflict between Washington D.C., and states like Colorado. 

The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA), was Introduced in every session of Congress between 1923 and 1972. Yet, at the end of its decade-long ratification period, only 35 states had signed off. Many advocates still urge states to ratify the ERA, which has become a symbol for many women’s rights groups. 

It’s never a bad idea to go straight to the source whenever a politician, pundit, or your cousin starts slinging around terms like “violation of constitutional rights.” For the most part, the debates over certain issues are to be expected due to the Founders’ word choice. And, just as it was during the writing and ratification process of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, it takes compromise, understanding, and discourse to keep our society moving forward.