How Do You Know If Your Civil Rights Have Been Violated?

Protecting your rights from any form of exploitation and abuse can be a daunting task, especially if you have little knowledge of what they are. Generally speaking, it's hard to protect something that you don't know much about. Similarly, some perpetrators end up violating someone else's rights due to their lack of adequate knowledge. 

You're entitled to certain rights and the liberty to live, work, and pursue happiness the way you see fit. Legally, the rights you're entitled to are classified into different types. For instance, the right to life, liberty, and property constitute your civil rights. To exercise them, you must know what your civil rights are because they're vital in protecting you from being mistreated.  

In this article, you'll learn more about civil rights and how you'd know if they're being violated. Aside from that, you can also check reliable online websites of legal service providers like www.fuchsberg.com to learn what to do in cases of civil rights violations. 

What Are Civil Rights?

Civil rights are the rights of the people to be free from unfair treatment and discrimination. These rights also comprise the rights of a person to receive equal treatment in different environments and circumstances, such as in education, housing, employment, and public accommodations. Your civil rights include the following:

• freedom of speech, expression, press, religion, and assembly
• freedom from discrimination (e.g., gender, color, race, age, nationality, disability)
• right to procedural due process
• right to petition the government

What Constitutes As Civil Rights Violations?

On the other hand, a civil rights violation is an offense that occurs as a result of a threat of force against the victim by the offender. While objectionable acts come in a variety of forms, not all of these violate constitutional rights. Specifically, a civil rights violation must involve the state enforcing the law and the victim suffering a loss or an injury.

What Are The Forms Of Common Civil Rights Violations?

Civil rights violations can take on many forms. While these violations can be quite confusing for some people, knowing when your rights are being violated can be of great help for you to know how to protect them. In particular, below are some examples of common civil rights violations that you might've experienced already without recognizing.

• Discrimination

Discrimination can take on many forms, such as housing, employment, public accommodations, and education discrimination. Discrimination claims involve presenting the victim's protected characteristics and may be filed under state or federal law. Generally, these claims are filed under the laws that provide utmost protection to the victim and ensure their safety.

(Photo : AdobeStock)

• Hate Crimes

The perpetrators use or express threats of physical force that are motivated by intolerance and hate based on the specific characteristics of the victim. Hate crimes are usually violent and are committed with the intention to hurt or intimidate other people because of their religion, race, ethnicity, nationality, sexual orientation, and disability. 

Acts of terrorism against a specific individual or community are also an example of hate crimes because such actions are expressions of hatred towards protected characteristics. Hate crime victims may file a lawsuit against a perpetrator if they can establish valid grounds for it.

• Police Brutality

There are also various forms of police misconduct. These include:

• Malicious infliction of pain
• Cruel and unjust punishment
• Abuse by a public official
• Wrongful convictions
• Unreasonable seizures and arrests

What Can You Do If Your Civil Rights Are Violated?

If you believe that your civil rights have been violated, you're most likely wondering what you should do next and what legal options are available to you. Below are four steps that you may take:

• file a claim with the government
• file a private lawsuit for civil rights violations
• engage in an informal agreement
• hire a competent lawyer with your civil rights claims.

Conclusion

Recognizing legal issues involving civil rights violations is already complicated, which is further compounded when you need to determine its elements and forms. Similarly, resolving such violations can be a difficult task to accomplish, especially if you lack proper expertise. Aside from that, essential decisions related to your situation can be complicated, such as determining whether your civil rights were violated, which law might apply to your situation, where you must file a lawsuit, and whether you must file it with the government.

If you believe that you've suffered from civil rights violations, such as hate crimes, discrimination, or police brutality, the best thing to do is to speak with your civil rights attorney. This way, your attorney can explain all options available to you and ensure the best possible results for you. 

© 2023 Lawyer Herald All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
* This is a contributed article and this content does not necessarily represent the views of lawyerherald.com