American Government: Philosophical and Theoretical Foundations Poll Anthony R.

Santillan

It is widely recognized that the United States of America is a melting pot. It thrives on diversity; a synthesis of the worlds copious and varied races, religions, and cultures. True indeed that America is a home to all. Since time immemorial, the population of the place was deemed to be predominately filled with people who migrated from the landmass of Europe with three grounds: religious freedom, political freedom, and economic opportunities. The modern American democracy is roughly based on the ideas fabricated by the political systems of ancient Greeks. There was a time, back long ago, Greek city-states, like Athens, embraced a form of democracy where all male adult citizens personally participated in the creation of laws. This is known as Direct Democracy, and aspects of it survive today in America in the form of referendums, initiatives, and recall elections. Take into account that way back then there had been a presence of gender discrimination. Later in this paper is a discussion of how modern political thinkers and historic occurrences paved their way to shape the irregularities of American Government; promoting equality in all aspects. It is an undeniable fact that America was once a British colony. It said to be that what fueled their settlement in the region was chiefly expansionism. Also, the taxes they earned through colonization financed many of their large-scale endeavors. Money, power and territory were the primary factors of the colonization. Once harmonious relations between Britain and America became increasingly conflict-ripped. The British leaders tighten the imperial reins. The most serious problem was the need for money to support the empire. These justifications were adequate for the emergence of American Revolution. Democracy was a vital force unleashed by the Revolution as Jensen (The New Nation, 1950) points out that the American Revolution, in result if not in origin, was more than a movement for independence. Planted in it were seeds that promised the fruit of democracy. The Revolution was a success. It delivered the goods. With its success came the Declaration of Independence in 1776. This led to the creation of a new government. Some originally European philosophies were adopted by American political thinkers and incorporated into the Constitution, too. Primary among these was the philosophy of Natural Law, which stated that all people were born with certain natural rights that government could not take away.

Thomas Jeffersons Preamble to the Declaration of Independence is a good example of Natural Law philosophy. John Lockes Social Contract Theory stated that the people make an agreement with the government whereby they surrender some of their natural rights in return for safety and order. If the contract is broken by government, revolution is allowed and expected. He believed that man is by nature a social animal, peaceful, and knowledgeable of the difference between right and wrong. For him, a social conflict is possible because the nature of man is peaceful. Montesquieu in The Spirit of Laws added the judiciary to Lockes executive and legislature. This would create a system of checks and balances between the branches that would prevent the overall government, or any of the individual branches, from getting too powerful. All of these were used as bases in establishing the new government. Before 1863, the Constitution protected slavery and made equality impossible. This led to the outbreak of the Civil War. The rationale behind the movement was apparent and that was because of uncompromising differences between the free and slave states over the power of the national government to prohibit slavery in the territories that had not yet become states. While the Revolution of 177-1783 created the United States, the Civil War of 1861-1865 determined what kind of nation it would be. The civil rights movement was a heroic episode in American history. It aimed to give African Americans the same citizenship rights that whites took for granted. It was a war waged on many fronts. In the 1960s it achieved impressive judicial and legislative victories against discrimination in public accommodations and voting. It had less complete but still considerable success in combating job and housing discrimination. The Civil Rights Act of 1866 extended citizenship to anyone born in the United States and gave African Americans full equality before the law. The civil rights movement did not just promote equality for African-Americans. It was also a social justice springboard for other causes. With the emancipation of the slaves by President Lincolns Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 and the passage of the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments during the Reconstruction period following Civil War, constitutional inequality was ended. Legal segregation was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954), in which the Court stated that separation implied inferiority. Civil Rights Act of 1964 bans discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, or national origin in employment and public accommodations. The Voting Rights Act of 1965 outlawed discriminatory voter-registration tests and authorized federal registration of persons and federally administered procedures in any state or political subdivision evidencing electoral discrimination or low registration rates. The womens

movement gained momentum after the first womens rights convention. The women did finally obtain the right to vote in 1920. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 prohibited job-related discrimination against individuals who are over forty years old on the basis of age, unless age is shown to be a bona fide occupational qualification reasonably necessary to the normal operation of the business. The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prohibited discrimination against persons with disabilities in programs receiving federal aid. The Education for All Handicapped Children Act (1975) provides that children with disabilities should receive an appropriate education. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 prohibits job discrimination against persons with physical and mental disabilities, requiring that positive steps be taken to comply with the act. Gay and lesbian rights groups work to promote laws protecting gay men and lesbians from discrimination and to repeal antigay laws. Gay men and lesbians are no longer barred from federal employments or from immigrating to this country. All of these equality movements were made possible by the concept of two great leftist thinkers namely Rousseau and Marx who hate inequalities. For them, freedom means being able to realize certain higher goods (such as to free and equal participation in political activities, freedom from alienation, etc.) In order for people to have the ability and opportunity to achieve these higher goods, the society has to create certain conditions for people. One of the key conditions, say Rousseau and Marx, is equality. It is evident with the discussion above that American Government was athirst of equality both moral and physical ones. Civil rights make a peaceful society. The ideas of political thinkers greatly shaped the American Government in its system itself and the law and policies that apply to all.

References: Equality and Democracy. (n.d.). Equality and Democracy. Retrieved February 20, 2014, from http://www.oycf.org/Perspectives2/4_022900/equality_and_democracy.htm TEACHERS. (n.d.). Scholastic Teachers. Retrieved February 19, 2014, from

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/civil-rights-movement-overview Riker, W. (1953). Democracy in the United States. New York: The Macmillan Company. Jr., J. M., & Roberts, M. (1978). The Pursuit of Happiness. New York: Collier Macmillan Publishers.