U.S. Department of State: "Amendments to the US Constitution, Annotated"
Read the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, also known as the Bill of Rights, and the accompanying annotations. The Bill of Rights lists the individual rights and freedoms that government may not infringe upon. It was adopted in 1791 by the founders to address fears about the potential of the new federal government to abuse power. The Bill of Rights now applies, though unevenly, to the states as well as the federal government. What these liberties are and how far they extend continues to be the focus of political debate.