The Rights of Citizens

Most countries have a written constitution providing the fundamental rights of citizens. These usually include general declarations about freedom and equality. Civil rights may be regarded as attempts to give meaning to the ideal of equality under laws and civil liberties as flowing from the ideal of freedom. Civil rights are powers or privileges that are guaranteed to the individual and protected from arbitrary removal by the government or other individuals. Civil liberties are freedoms that are guaranteed to the individual. They declare what the government cannot do; in contrast, civil rights declare what the government must do or provide.

In the USA the first ten amendments to the Constitution guarantee freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press and freedom to assemble in public and to ask the government to consider grievances. Among the other guarantees are the right in criminal cases to be judged in a public trial by an impartial jury, to be represented by a lawyer at one’s trial and freedom from cruel or unusual punishment. Because of the Bill of Rights, police cannot stop and search or arrest a person without good reason, nor can they search anyone’s home without clear cause and the permission of a court.

The Constitution recognizes other rights. A very important one is the right to “due process”. That means that no one can be deprived of life, liberty or property unless all proper legal procedures have been followed. Police, government officials and agencies and judges must be very careful not to omit or shorten these prescribed legal procedures in any case. The Constitution guarantees equal rights to all, and says no state can offer privileges to some people without offering these privileges to others.

In 1954, the father of a black girl living in Kansas decided that it was wrong that his daughter could not attend a school near their home because the school was for white children only. The father also believed the Constitution was being violated because he considered the education offered in the distant school for black children to be inferior to that offered in the white school, and he took the case to court. The Supreme Court was asked to decide whether the girl’s constitutional rights were being violated because she was forced to attend a separate and – as claimed her father – inferior school. In this case, Brown v.¹ Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, the court ruled in favor of the girl’s father and several other individuals who joined the case and against the state educational system. Since that time, black children have had the right to attend school with white children in all states.

Britain is unusual because its constitution is not found in a formal written document. Instead, the constitutional rights of citizens and the powers of government are found in various case-law rulings, statutes, and even in traditions. There is a debate in Britain about having a written constitution. Some politicians and legal experts demand that Britain should have a written constitution. They argue that it would guarantee citizens’ rights better. Others argue that the lack of a written constitution has not stood in the way of a long tradition of individual liberty in Britain, and that many countries with written constitutions in fact suffer from oppressive governments which simply find ways to ignore constitutional rights.

It is essential that civil rights and liberties should be conferred by

constitution, code, statute, and case. But the question what civil rights and liberties citizens enjoy depends frequently on how these rights or liberties are actually interpreted, and how far they can be and are secured and enforced.

Note:

¹ v. = versus ['vWsqs] лат. против (в названиях судебных дел)

EXERCISE 5

Прочитайте текст еще раз, найдите и переведите на русский язык определения понятий: гражданские праваигражданские свободы.

EXERCISE 6

Найдите в тексте и переведите на русский язык слова с суффиксами –dom,–ure,–ive и приставкой en –. Определите, от каких слов они образованы.

EXERCISE 7

Переведете на русский язык данные ниже фразы и словосочетания:

constitution provides, constitution recognizes, constitution guarantees, constitution declares, to violate the constitution; to violate the rights and liberties, to guarantee the rights and liberties, to enjoy the rights and liberties, to ignore the rights and liberties, to enforce the rights and liberties, to confer the rights and liberties, to interpret the rights and liberties, to secure the rights and liberties.

EXERCISE 8

Найдите в тексте английские эквиваленты следующих словосочетаний:

общие заявления; произвольная отмена; открыто собираться; рассматривать жалобы; беспристрастное жюри; без достаточной причины; без явного основания; надлежащая судебная процедура; раздельная школа; худшая (по качеству) школа; школа для белых; школа, расположенная далеко от дома; в пользу (кого-л.); постановления суда общего права; эксперты-юристы; отсутствие писаной конституции; не препятствовать, не стоять на пути; обыскивать человека; находить способы; зависит от того … насколько.

EXERCISE 9

Переведите следующие словосочетания на английский язык, используя схемы как подсказку:

I. 1) обоснованное притязание; 2) иск о возмещении вреда; 3) ис- ковое требование на небольшую сумму; 4) денежное требование; 5) претензия по качеству продукции;

II. 1) признавать претензию; 2) урегулировать претензию; 3) заяв­лять права; 4) оспаривать иск;

III. 1) претендовать на иммунитет; 2) требовать возмещения убыт­ков; 3) претендовать на привилегию; 4) требовать статуса потерпевшего; 5) требовать возложения ответственности.

I. money			II.	to settle
valid				to admit
product liability	claim				a claim
injury				to meet
small				to lay

	III.		damages
			immunity
		to claim	privilege
			responsibility
			victim

EXERCISE 10

Подберите пары близких по значению слов и словосочетаний из двух колонок:

	1) fundamental	a) unbiased
	2) liberty	b) complaint
	3) to guarantee	c) to prove
	4) to assemble	d) to get together
	5) impartial	e) freedom
	6) cause	f) really
	7) grievance	g) Afro-American
	8) careful	h) reason
	9) to have the right	i) to assure
	10) frequently	j) cautious
	11) in public	k) often
	12) actually	l) openly
	13) black	m) basic
	14) to argue	n) to be entitled

EXERCISE 11

Заполните пропуски предлогами и переведите предложения на русский язык.

by(2)for from(2) of(2) on to(3) without

1. They sacked him … giving a reason.

2. Everyone has the right … life, liberty and security … person.

3. The defendant has been deprived … the right to see his family.

4. He suffered … constant attacks made … his opponents.

5. Laws requiring segregated schools … whites and blacks were declared unconstitutional.

6. Whether she goes … law school depends … her exam results.

7. That amendment … the constitution hasn’t been ratified yet.

8. These amendments protect ordinary citizens … intrusion … the police.

EXERCISE 12

Заполните пропуски подходящими по смыслу словами из правой колонки. Обратите внимание на то, что два слова являются лишними.

1. The Fifth Amendment … that no person shall be required to give evidence against himself.		constitution   deprives   arbitrary
2. No one shall be subjected to … arrest, detention or exile.
3. The judges and juries are expected to be independent and … .		ruling   violates   impartial   search   grievance   provides   agency
4. The … is superior to any ordinary act of the legislature.
5. Can the police …a private house without first obtaining a court warrant? 6. A law enforcement …, such as the police, makes sure the law is observed. 7. The use of torture … international human rights laws. 8. The … is final and without appeal.

EXERCISE 13

Найдите в тексте и переведите на русский язык предложения, в которых глаголы употребляются в сослагательном наклонении.

EXERCISE 14

Дайте ответы на вопросы по содержанию текста.

1. What does a constitution provide?

2. What do civil rights and liberties declare?

3. Does the USA have a written or unwritten constitution?

4. How many amendments does the Bill of Rights comprise?

5. What does the Bill of Rights guarantee?

6. What does “due process” mean?

7. Why did the Supreme Court rule in favor of Mr. Brown?

8. What documents guarantee the constitutional rights of citizens in Britain?

EXERCISE 15

Кратко изложите текст, используя в предложениях опорные слова (или предложите свой вариант передачи содержания текста):

1) written constitutions, to provide, rights, liberties.

2) powers, privileges, the individual.

3) liberties, freedoms, the individual.

4) the most important, to be provided, the Bill of Rights.

5) to comprise, speech, religion, the press, a jury trial.

6) people, to defend, in court.

7) 1954, the father, to bring a case, to win.

8) since, black children, to attend school.

9) in Britain, to be guaranteed, case-law rulings, statutes, customs.

10) essential, to be enforced, in practice.

EXERCISE 16

Переведите текст The Rights of Citizens на русский язык, обращая внимание на юридические термины из раздела Vocabulary.

VOCABULARY

constitution	-конституция, основной закон
written constitution	- писаная конституция
unwritten constitution	- неписаная конституция
to provide	-предусматривать,постановлять
right
fundamental rights	- основные права
civil rights	- гражданские права
constitutional rights	- конституционные права
liberty	-свобода;право
civil liberties	- гражданские свободы
freedom	-свобода;право
freedom of speech	- свобода слова
freedom of religion	- свобода совести
freedom of (the) press	- свобода прессы
arbitrary	-произвольный;дискреционный
arbitrary removal	- произвольное лишение
amendment	-поправка;исправление
to assemble	-собирать(ся);созывать
grievance	-жалоба,недовольство
impartial	-беспристрастный,справедливый
impartial jury	- беспристрастные присяжные; справедливый суд присяжных
permission	-разрешение
due process	-надлежащая судебная процедура
to deprive	-лишать
agency	-орган (учреждение, организация);агентство
government agency	- правительственный / госу­дарственный орган
to omit	-пренебрегать;не совершать чего-л.
to violate	-нарушать,попирать,преступать
to rule	-постановлять;решать
to rule in favor of	- вынести судебное решение в пользу
to rule against	- вынести судебное решение против
ruling	- постановление, судебное решение
case-law ruling	- решение суда общего права
oppressive	-деспотический,жесткий
to ignore	-игнорировать;не учитывать,не принимать во внимание
to confer	-давать,предоставлять
to enjoy	-пользоваться;обладать
to secure	-обеспечивать,гарантировать, защищать