[Mojave]

My question is, if the constitution protects a particular right of the individual, say, free speech, does the authority of the constitution (protection of that individual right) extend only to the federal government, thereby allowing individual state governments to limit the same individual freedom?

Some rights have been "incorporated" and some have not. In the case of "incorporated" free speech, a town could once place a crêche in the town square prior and have a prayer to Christ at its high school graduation, prior to the Constitution being modified from the bench. Now such expressions can be silenced by order of a federal court district judge.

[Dead Corpse]

They don't need incpororation. They are pre-existing Rights. The protections for those Rights are valid immediately after the ratification process for something like the BoR's Amendments.

No where, except in your fevered little mind, does it require Judicial review and opinion to get it to apply as written.

[RobRoy]

There we get into the concept of “government endorsement of religion” and individual rights.

I firmle believe that, although teachers, at school, cannot endorse religion, a student can, in a speech, laud whatever god he wishes. I believe the constitution protects that for the student for he is not an agent of the state. And if the teacher is on his own time and not acting in official government capacity, he can do the same. And no city or state (or federal) law should stop him, if it is to be considered constitutional.

Just an opinion, of course.