Antidemocratic America

Democracy? What a Joke

One may contend that American democracy was doomed from the very beginning. The Constitution itself excluded rights for women and African Americans (save for the mention of slavery.) The framers of the Constitution did not even intend to create a democracy, but a simple republic. "Many of them felt that the nonwealthy majority-an unruly mob-would tyrannize the wealthy minority if given political power" (Edwards 44). Interestingly enough, we now call ourselves a democratic republic, while often operating by the same concept as aforementioned. Democracy is stained by misrepresentation, undistributed voting, inconsistent policies.

While government books would probably say that Congress is the most democratic branch of government, a closer examination would indicate the Congress is not a true representation of the people. The problem has its roots in competition between supposedly equal citizens without taking into account the unequal resources that citizens possess. The elite section of the society enjoys superior wealth, education and political skill in general, that allow its members to use their privileges at the expense of the majority. If one looks as the backgrounds of these congressmen, one cannot deny that they are all far more privileged than the average American. The majority of Congressmen are middle-aged, white, Protestant, lawyers or businessmen. A quick list of the minorities in the United States being under-represented might read as follows: African-Americans, Women, Blacks, Hispanics, Gays and Lesbians, Asian-Americans, and Native Americans. Just to throw out some numbers: Hispanics account for about 4% of Congress--with no seats in the Senate-and 12.5% of the population. Blacks hold 7% of seats in Congress-- also without seats in the Senate-- and compose nearly 13% of the population. Women are by far the most under-represented group-13.6% of Congress and 51% of the population (Edwards 356) . This distribution cannot be argued as a valid representation of the American people. Furthermore, Congress is overwhelmingly structured through bi-partisan politics. People who do not feel strongly about either major party may be feel apathetic toward voting in general, or may pick a random candidate for lack of a better one. Increasingly, interest groups and political action committees are making politicians biased-- Special interests buy favors from congressmen and presidents through political action committees, devices by which groups like corporations, professional associations, trade unions, investment banking groups--can pool their money and give up to $10,000 per election to each House and Senate candidate (Lind 157). Naturally, money plays a key role here, and most Americans cannot afford to buy a Senator to have their concerns addressed. The agenda of politicians is therefore tainted by such favors, distorting public policy.

Voting is a concept meant to legitimize democracy, but in the case of the United States, it is further evidence of inegalitarianism. The ideas that "every vote counts" and the system of "one vote per person" intends democratic choosing, low voter turnouts paint a different picture. Although it is arguable that this problem is something beyond the government's control, income and education are factors that often determine willingness to vote and are influenced by government. Voter turnout was 54.5% in the last election (http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/uselection2004/) If education was equal, the requirements would be the same. Funds for public schools are paid by citizen's taxes, and certain populations are extremely polarized in wealth. The cities with a density of rich citizens always seem to have an upper hand in educational opportunity and resources. Contrariwise, poor cities have lower graduation rates and overall lower scores across the board. If education cannot be equal, students should at least have requirements that will inform them and show a greater need for their vote. Another arguable concept of voting is the Electoral College. The Electoral College members are appointed by state party committees. This system is biased because candidates are sometimes chosen as a way of being rewarded for service to the party or other close ties. In essence, the popular vote of the people is undermined,