Democracy is a method for making political decisions; it is what makes a country distinguished, powerful and is the basis for American success. The connotation I get from democracy is government of the people, by the people, and for the people. I also think democracy must encompass all people, and there should be no prejudices or restrictions against people in a democratic nation. There are seven key principles that satisfy a democracy, which includes: equality in voting, effective participation, enlightened understanding, citizen control of the agenda, inclusion, rule of decision, and representation. Is America a democracy? Yes, America is a democracy by definition. However, over the course of American history, the shape of American democracy and how it was defined has greatly evolved. In the early part of American history, I believe that the government was a democracy. In theory it was to be a government in which society is divided along class lines and the upper-class elite will rule, regardless of the formal niceties of the governmental organization. However, the lower class citizens were not the only people being overlooked; I feel a nation is not truly democratic until every person has a voice; men, women, all races and backgrounds. .
Our early government failed to provide equality and many other major ideals that fit into the true definition of a democratic society. Many Anti-Federalists agreed that the Constitution was a class-based document. Even the famous Alexis de Tocqueville recognized the prejudices in American democracy but noted its greatness as well; "I confess that in America I saw more than America; I sought the image of democracy itself, with its inclinations, its character, its prejudices, and its passions, in order to learn what we have to fear or hope from its progress" (Ball, p.45). Although the early government of America seemed to be an elitist theory of government, it was still a democracy in the simplest form; democracy is just a method for making political decisions, and it did just that.
