"Promises Denied," the second instructional activity in a unit that asks learners to consider the responsibilities individuals have to uphold human rights, looks at documents that illustrate the difficulty the US has had trying to live up to the ideals set forth in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Groups look at state and national legislation that denied or limited the constitutional rights of different groups. The instructional activity concludes with a discussion of the particular events that impelled these curtailments of rights.