I wrote this essay for a class a few years ago and it's been on my mind lately. Something to think about as we live day by day in our current socio/political state...nothing's ever promised tomorrow today...
The term democracy “refers to a political system in which the interests of the people at large prevail” (Denhardt, 2006, p. 3). But what exactly are the interests of the people at large and who are these people that make the group? These are some of the questions that arise in any discussion regarding democracy. Due to its nature, different people have interpreted democracy and the democratic processes in a variety of ways; therefore the spectrum in which democracy is practiced is wide-ranging.
In the United States, important cultural values such as the ideas of individualism, equality, and liberty, are significant and central concepts conducive in the creation of its democratic republic and society. Individualism is “the idea that the dignity and integrity of the individual is of supreme importance” (p. 3). It is in this idea of individualism that the Declaration of Independence was manifested to secure that “certain inalienable rights” are protected by and is the purpose of government. Equality is the idea that “each individual has an equal claim to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” (pg.3). Regarding the idea of equality, Denhardt and Denhardt writes:
In this view, each person be seen as an end, not as a means; no one should be a mere tool of another. Moreover, equality in the field of government would suggest that differences in wealth or position are not sufficient reasons for giving one group preference over another. In a democracy, each one has an equal claim to the attention of the system (pg. 3).
Lastly, the concept of liberty (or freedom) “suggests that the individual citizen of a democracy should have a high degree of self-determination…Liberty is more than just the absence of constraints; it suggests the freedom to act positively in pursuit of one’s own end” (pg. 3-4).
Each of these values has been and continues to be imperative in the promotion, creation, and maintenance of the democratic society within which the American government operates. But, although though these concepts have survived throughout the centuries, the degree practiced of these values exercised by the American people and government have not always been maximized. Throughout American history, recorded are the decisions and events in which these values have been compromised and replaced with other interpretations of those values or other values altogether. For example, the concept of equality has been promoted and documented in the Declaration of Independence (that all men are created equal), but the reality of slaves or a group of people treated as “lesser beings” in the United States has actualized and in my opinion, continues through covert methods. On the other hand, having these concepts as the foundations of America’s democratic society, forces people (though not all), especially during a time of crisis, to refer to back to these concepts, analyze the state of the society, and push for what’s promised. In the Constitution of the United States, Amendment XIV (1868), Section 1, states that “…[n]o State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law; nor deny any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the law” (Greenberg and Page, 2002, pg. A-11). This amendment to the Constitution was enacted into law due to the problem of slavery, which plagued and divided our society prior to that time. It was a mandatory policy, which enacted, called into question the current practice of slavery against one of the central concepts of the American democratic society, equality.
Although time has revealed that maximizing the ideals of these concepts are a difficult tasks for our government and our national community, I believe that having these concepts, as the foundation of this society is still important in trying to become a better democratic society. These concepts and its definitions are goals that our community can and should continue to attain for all people. It is through these concepts that the freedoms and quality of life we so enjoy are secured and although it is the government’s job to protect them, it is our job as citizens to demand them. So I challenge you, my community, the body politic which this government was created to serve, to take a stand and let your voices be heard. Demand the promises of yesterday to actualize TODAY!!
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