Rigby5
Diamond Member
Find that in the Constitution, please. Get your nurse to read it for you.
First of all, the constitution does not contain ALL individual rights.
But the First Amendment states:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
In essence, First Amendment rights protect an individual's religious freedom, the free press, and free expression from interference by the federal government. Through more than two hundred years of court cases, the U.S. Supreme Court has been tasked with interpreting the First Amendment to determine the breadth of these fundamental rights.
And while state did impose religious beliefs before the 14th amendment, that clearly has not been legal since then.