Last week, my Journalism professor asked our class a simple question: “What are the freedoms granted to U.S. citizens by the First Amendment of the Constitution?” I’m ashamed to say the answer didn’t roll off the tip of my tongue. I know the gist of the Constitution; I can tell you most of the rights we have, not necessarily in any particular order or which amendment they fall under, but I know the general idea. As it turns out, I’m not the only one who had trouble listing such seemingly obvious information. Out into the field we went, surveying at least 10 people: five men, five women, at least four of a different race. The result? Only two people out of 10 could list the freedoms granted by the First Amendment. From the results, it appears that Americans don’t know the U.S. Constitution very well. While most people know its general ideas, when asked to identify the Amendment’s exact freedoms, few were confident in their responses.

The First Amendment, ratified in 1791, establishes freedom of religion, speech, the press, the right to peaceably assemble and to petition the government. David Wong, an Asian American, listed all of them as if on cue. For Wong, it’s easy: “Just think freedom, and go down the list.” He picked up the knowledge from various history classes, most notably AP American History. Wong was not born in the United States, but moved here when he was a child. He noted that the rights were essentially variations of freedom of expression, be it through speech, the media, or what religion you choose to practice. For others, the task was not so simple. Lindsey Quistgaard initially said she didn’t know. After some hesitation, she listed all of the rights in her own words, except freedom to petition the government. Although she was able to paraphrase the Amendment fairly accurately, she sounded very unsure of her answer: “It’s like the Ten Commandments – we know what they want us to do, but we don’t know them word for word.” Kim Lazzar looked taken aback by the question and appealed to look it up. After some coaxing, she managed to name two, freedom of speech and of religion, though she used to know them all in high school. For such an important document, its information is not faithfully retained. “You shouldn’t have to memorize [the Amendments],” Lazzar said. “As long as we know freedom exists, we don’t need to be able to rattle them off.”

Nearly everyone guessed freedom of speech, with freedom of religion being the next frequent response. Sarah King named freedom of the press to raise her total to three, adding that she has been required to know them for various classes. However, she has largely forgotten them, remarking, “We know we have a ton of rights as Americans but it never is relevant, unless you get in trouble I guess.” Andrew Rubino knew the same three, remembering them from seventh grade. He commented on the fact that so few people knew the First Amendment by heart, saying, “Their rights aren’t challenged everyday – a minority, or an activist, would most likely know them better.”

The trend is not limited to the young; a married couple in their late 40’s was also at a loss. The two adults named legitimate rights, such as the right to bear arms and to vote, but none that were actually in the First Amendment. Though the survey was small, it is fairly indicative that most Americans pay little attention to the wording of the Constitution. After time to think, most people could usually arrive at freedom of speech, religion, and the press, but hardly anyone remembered freedom involving assembly or the government. Among those questioned, foreigners tended to know the Amendment better than native-born Americans. Americans know that they have rights, and are familiar with them in a general way, but don’t see it as necessary to have them memorized. Are Americans, except those who have not always had the Constitution’s protection, taking our freedoms for granted? Or is it really unnecessary to memorize its maxims? Is a general knowledge good enough? Most people I asked didn’t see it as a problem that they couldn’t answer my question. Rather, they felt the information was essentially irrelevant. Either that means they feel so confident in their freedom that they don’t need to be prepared in case it’s challenged, or else they are remarkably indifferent.

In America, we don’t face the problem of having too little rights, or of having our rights threatened, unless, as Rubino says, you are a minority or an activist pushing for change. Born under the umbrella of the Constitution, many tend to take it for granted. For others who have moved here from foreign countries, they feel it’s worth the time to learn about our government and liberties, knowing them well enough to answer the straightforward survey question, not necessarily word for word, but close enough. On my college campus, students complain about America all the time. There is good reason for that; either they disapprove of the war, or Bush’s policies, or the rampant materialism, etc. Nevertheless, I think it would be quite a shock to move out the country and realize that not everywhere is so free. We should always want to make our country better and voice our discontent if we don’t like its policies, but we shouldn’t forget how lucky we are at the same time. We can get away with not knowing if we don’t feel threatened. Ironically, all the freedoms we have give us the freedom to ignore them. But even if we want to disagree with something or say we don’t like America, we ought to know more about what we’re arguing against. It wouldn’t hurt to review our history books.

Is learning the Amendments really such a chore? By the time I got through asking so many people and talking about the Constitution, a lot of my old social studies knowledge came flooding back. Part of the problem is it’s not knowledge we use every day. As my friend put it, “No one ever asks.” It’s not something that is buried so deep within is that we are clueless; most of us are adequately familiar with our rights, or at least know them in a vague sense. But maybe that isn’t good enough. If only two people out of 10 can tell me what freedoms the First Amendment establishes, that could indicate a problem, or at least widespread indifference. From such a small survey it is difficult to make definite conclusions, but it is safe to say it wouldn’t hurt to brush up on our own country’s Constitution.