Could You Pass the U.S. Citizenship Test?

B. The Constitution spells out the framework for the U.S. government and outlines the rights of Americans. It was signed by our nation’s founders in 1787—11 years after the American Colonies declared independence from Britain. The Constitution established the three branches of our federal, or national, government: legislative, executive, and judicial. It also set up the government’s relationship with the states and citizens. Amendments, which were added to the Constitution later, outline important additions and changes to the document, including guarantees of Americans’ rights.

A. The president leads the executive branch, which enforces federal laws. The president decides which laws are most important to uphold and has the power to veto (reject) new laws passed by Congress. He or she also nominates people to fill vacancies on the U.S. Supreme Court. The Court decides whether laws are constitutional (allowed by the U.S. Constitution). The executive branch also includes the vice president and members of the Cabinet—a group of presidential advisers.

C. The 13 original states were Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Virginia. They started out as the 13 American Colonies of Great Britain. Beginning in the 17th century, the Colonies were established along the eastern shore of North America by British settlers. After defeating Britain in the American Revolution (1775-1783), the Colonies went on to become the first 13 states in the newly formed United States. 

A. John G. Roberts Jr. is the current chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He was appointed to the nine-member Court in 2005 by President George W. Bush. The main duty of a chief justice is to lead the other eight justices on the Court as they hear, discuss, and make rulings in cases to determine whether laws are constitutional. The chief justice usually administers the oath of office to the president and vice president at their inauguration ceremony. And if a president were to go on trial for impeachment, the chief justice would preside over, or lead, the trial.

C. The 19th Amendment, which guaranteed American women the right to vote, was added to the U.S. Constitution on August 26, 1920. That historic milestone followed decades of arrests, jailings, and demonstrations—including picketing outside the White House—in an effort for women to win the ability to cast ballots.

B. The U.S. stock market crash on October 29, 1929, also known as Black Tuesday, marked the start of the Great Depression—a period of severe economic decline that lasted for about a decade. The economy was devastated, and by the early 1930s, a quarter of Americans were unemployed. By 1939, the worst of the Depression was over. But it was only after 1941, when the U.S. entered World War II, that the economy truly strengthened, a change spurred by rapid industrial growth.

A. The Bill of Rights, which are the first 10 amendments to the U.S. Constitution, spell out people’s basic rights and liberties. When the nation’s founders created the Constitution in 1787, not everyone was happy with it. Some states agreed to ratify (approve) it only if a list of rights for individuals was added. Ratified in 1791, the Bill of Rights protects key individual liberties, including the freedoms of speech, the press, and religion, and the right to public trials.

B. Alexander Hamilton, along with fellow founders James Madison and John Jay, wrote the Federalist Papers from 1787 to 1788. The papers, which the men authored under the name Publius, were a series of essays urging the states to ratify the U.S. Constitution. (Federalists believed that the country should operate under a strong national government as outlined in the Constitution. Their opposition, the Antifederalists, wanted states to keep their independence.) Nine of the 13 states needed to ratify the Constitution for it to go into effect, and New Hampshire became the ninth state to do so in 1788. The Constitution officially became the law of the land the following year. But Antifederalists still made an impact. Lawmakers agreed that it was necessary to protect states and individual Americans from too much government control. In 1791, freedoms that some Antifederalists had demanded became the first 10 amendments to the Constitution—the Bill of Rights. 

A. Martin Luther King Jr. was a leader in the civil rights movement of the 1950s and ’60s, which sought racial equality for Black Americans. A Baptist minister from Atlanta, Georgia, King was the spokesperson for a historic 1955 bus boycott in Montgomery, Alabama, which resulted in the U.S. Supreme Court declaring racial segregation on public buses unconstitutional. He also helped organize major protest rallies, including the 1963 March on Washington, in which he gave one of the most powerful speeches in American history, “I Have a Dream.” King’s activism helped secure passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed racial segregation in schools, workplaces, and public facilities. Before King was assassinated in 1968 at age 39, he was also instrumental in helping to secure voting rights and fair housing for people of color. 

A. The 10 national holidays in the U.S. are New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Presidents’ Day (Washington’s Birthday), Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. National holidays (also known as federal holidays) are holidays that have been established by U.S. law. On these days, federal government buildings are closed and federal employees get a day off work. 

B. The U.S. Supreme Court is the nation’s highest court and heads the judicial branch of the federal government. It is made up of nine justices who decide whether laws are constitutional. The Court hears about 80 cases during its annual term, which lasts from October to June. Justices serve for life. The decisions they make on cases have a lasting impact on the nation’s laws. 

B. The two parts of the U.S. Congress are the Senate and the House of Representatives. Together they make up the legislative, or lawmaking, branch of the U.S. government. Congress is responsible for writing, debating, and passing bills (proposals for laws). Bills that are passed by both parts of Congress and signed by the president become laws. The House has 435 members, called representatives. States with larger populations get more representatives. In the 100-member Senate, each state gets two senators.