What Is Democracy?
Equality and the Law
The democratic state cannot guarantee that life will treat
everyone equally, and it has no responsibility to do
so. However, writes constitutional law expert John P. Frank,
"Under no circumstances should the state impose
additional inequalities; it should be required to deal evenly and
equally with all of its people."
No one is above the law, which is, after all, the creation
of the people, not something imposed upon them.
The citizens of a democracy submit to the law because they
recognize that, however indirectly, they are
submitting to themselves as makers of the law. When laws are
established by the people who then have to obey
them, both law and democracy are served.
Due Process
Every state must have the power to maintain order and punish
criminal acts, but the rules and procedures by
which the state enforces its laws must be public and explicit,
not secret, arbitrary, or subject to political
manipulation by the state.
What are the essential requirements of due process of law in a
democracy?
None of these restrictions means that the state lacks the
necessary power to enforce the law and punish
offenders. On the contrary, the criminal justice system in a
democratic society will be effective to the degree
that its administration is judged by the population to be fair
and protective of individual rights, as well as of the
public interest.
Judges may be either appointed or elected to office, and
hold office for specified terms or for life. However
they are chosen, it is vital that they be independent of the
nation's political authority to ensure their impartiality.
Judges cannot be removed for trivial or merely political reasons,
but only for serious crimes or misdeeds--and
then only through a formal procedure, such as impeachment (the
bringing of charges) and trial in the
legislature.
Constitutions
Despite their enduring, monumental qualities, constitutions
must be capable of change and adaptation if they
are to be more than admirable fossils. The world's oldest
written constitution, that of the United States, consists
of seven brief articles and 27 amendments. This written
document, however, is only the foundation for a vast
structure of judicial decisions, statutes, presidential actions,
and traditional practices that has been erected over
the past 200 years--and kept the U.S. Constitution alive and
relevant.
This pattern of constitutional evolution takes place in
every democracy. In general, there are two schools of
thought about the process of amending, or changing, a nation's
constitution. One is to adopt a difficult
procedure, requiring many steps and large majorities. As a
result, the constitution is changed infrequently, and
then only for compelling reasons that receive substantial public
support. This is the model of the United States,
whose Constitution is a brief statement of the general
principles, powers, and limits of government, together with
a more specific listing of duties, procedures, and, in the Bill
of Rights, the fundamental rights of individual
citizens.
A much simpler method of amendment, which many nations use,
is to provide that any amendment may be
adopted by approval of the legislature and passed by the voters
at the next election. Constitutions able to be
changed in this fashion can be quite lengthy, with specific
provisions that differ little from the general body of
legislation.
No constitution like America's, written in the 18th century,
could have survived unchanged into the late 20th
century. Similarly, no constitution in force today will survive
into the next century without the capacity for
change--while still holding fast to principles of individual
rights, due process, and government through the
consent of the governed.
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CONTENTS
Introduction
Defining Democracy
Rights
The Rule of Law
Elections
The Culture of Democracy
Democratic Government
Politics, Economics, and Pluralism