The first thing is to know the difference between covil rights and civil liberties. To safeguard civil liberties, we need protection FROM the government. Civil liberties are protected mainly by the Bill of Rights and the 14th amednment to thhe Constitution. The First Amendment for example prevents the government from interfering with freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and freedom to petition the government, from government interference. Civil rights are actually not in the Bill of Rights. These are legal protections provided BY the government, to protect us from others. An example of civil rights would be the right to vote. The government has passed laws that protect civil rights like the voting rights act of 1965.
You can find a good overview of your topic at hthe site below. Note that at the bottom of each page there is a next button to get additional information.
https://www.ushistory.org/gov/10.asp
