What does the Ninth Amendment mean in simple terms?

Asked by: Dr. Gordon Barrows  |  Last update: February 19, 2022
Score: 4.7/5 (20 votes)

Ninth Amendment, amendment (1791) to the Constitution of the United States

Constitution of the United States
A constitution is a set of rules that guides how a country, state, or other political organization works. The constitution may tell what the branches of the government are, what powers they have, and how they work. It may also state the rights of citizens.
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, part of the Bill of Rights, formally stating that the people retain rights absent specific enumeration. ... The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

What is the main purpose of the 9th Amendment?

The Ninth Amendment tells us that the existence of a written constitution should not be treated as an excuse for ignoring nontextual rights, but it also tells us that the advocates of these rights cannot rest on ancient constitutional text to establish their existence.

What rights does the 9th amendment give us?

Because the rights protected by the Ninth Amendment are not specified, they are referred to as “unenumerated.” The Supreme Court has found that unenumerated rights include such important rights as the right to travel, the right to vote, the right to keep personal matters private and to make important decisions about ...

What is a simple example of the 9th Amendment?

Judicial Explanation

One judicial example of the Ninth Amendment is the 1973 case of Roe versus Wade. In 1973, it was ruled that under the Ninth Amendment that women have privacy rights over their bodies. This made abortion legal in America. Abortions were still being performed even when they were considered illegal.

How does the 9th Amendment affect us today?

The complete text of the Ninth Amendment states: ... Today, the Amendment is often cited in legal attempts to prevent the federal government from expanding the powers of Congress specifically granted to it under Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution.

The Ninth Amendment Explained: The Constitution for Dummies Series

16 related questions found

How is the 9th Amendment violated?

The states are violating the 9th amendment by banning same sex marriage. ... The only way the ban on same sex marriage can be legal is to ban all marriage. The states can not take the rights from one group of citozens while leaving the rest of them with the same right.

Why is the 9th Amendment controversial?

Controversies. Controversies over the Ninth Amendment stem mainly from whether the Amendment has the power to grant previously unmentioned rights as the Court discovers them. ... Historically, the courts have mostly ignored the Ninth Amendment, only citing it as a way to read the Constitution rather than an explicit right.

When was the 9th Amendment been used?

The Ninth Amendment was first used by the Supreme Court to define an “unenumerated right” in the case of Griswold v. Connecticut (1965). The right to privacy is not referred to anywhere in the Bill of Rights. However, in deciding Griswold, the Court found that the right was indeed protected by the Constitution.

What court cases deal with the 9th Amendment?

At least two Supreme Court cases attempted to use the Ninth Amendment in their rulings, though they were ultimately forced to pair them with other amendments.
  • U.S. Public Workers v. Mitchell (1947) ...
  • Griswold v. Connecticut (1965), Concurring Opinion. ...
  • Griswold v. Connecticut (1965), Dissenting Opinion.

Why is the 9th Amendment important in the protection of individual rights?

Why is the 9th Amendment important in the protection of individual rights? Because it declares that rights exist beyond those listed in the Constitution. Which constitutional provision sets up, in Thomas Jefferson's words, "a wall of separation between church and state"?

What are the limitations of the Ninth Amendment?

It only granted Congress limited powers, and therefore, Congress had no power to infringe free speech, for example, or religious liberty, and therefore, wouldn't be able to do so, and dangerous, Madison said, because if you had a bill of rights, people might wrongly assume that if a right wasn't written down, it wasn't ...

Who opposed the 9th Amendment?

However, when the Anti-Federalists—who opposed the new Constitution—demanded the inclusion of a bill of rights as a condition of ratification, James Madison obliged them. One of the specific amendments they demanded was, you guessed it, what eventually became the 9th Amendment.

Why did the Anti Federalists push for the 9th Amendment?

First, the Anti-Federalists underscored the fact that the Constitution guarantees certain liberties even without a Bill of Rights. ... Such an amendment, the Anti-Federalists argued, would protect those liberties that might fall through the cracks of written constitutional provisions. This idea became the Ninth Amendment.

What is called federalism?

Federalism is a system of government in which the power is divided between a central authority and various constituent units of the country. Usually, a federation has two levels of government. One is the government for the entire country that is usually responsible for a few subjects of common national interest.

What is the most overlooked amendment?

The Ninth Amendment (Amendment IX) to the United States Constitution addresses rights, retained by the people, that are not specifically enumerated in the Constitution.

Is the right to privacy in the 9th Amendment?

The Court explained that the right to privacy was inherent in the First, Third, Fourth, Fifth, and Ninth Amendments. ... The Ninth Amendment provides: 'The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.