

Democracy in Doubt

	The American people did not see a true democracy till a time way beyond the 1920's. Through ordeals dealing with the African Americans, Women's rights, and the many immigrants the American people have dealt with many issues were the government side stepped what our forefathers called Democracy. The American people have seen elections bought, people violated, and rights taken away through legislative law. How can America be based on a dream of democracy when our own government is bent on sub staining its current control of the population? Through the visions of change this great country has developed into a true democracy; but between 1865 till around 1929 America could be seen an hour glass each side holding part of the democracy showing the signs of what the dreamers of this country were looking for; their just rights.
	The rights for African Americans came when they were freed from slavery in 1865, which granted them "one freedom"; freedom from slavery. Democracy would have given African Americans the right to vote but no they had to wait till 1868 till they can the right to vote. The reason for this is because the white Anglo-Saxon government was afraid of what might happen and what changes would occur if they were given the opportunity. The changes that started to occur scared the white government so much that they in stated Pole Taxed in 1889 till around 1910 in southern states. The Pole taxes were meant to control the election so that the great Anglo-Saxon people would stay in power and run this democracy they called a government. The Pole tax cause a 96% drop in the African American vote. The African American count went from 130 thousand voters to roughly five thousand; 125 thousand voters just disappeared in Louisiana alone, because of the tactics used by the government. 
	African Americans were still now out of the whole when dealing with the federal government, they had other issues that lead to their disenfranchisement. To control the vote of the African Americas the state governments used other tactics; like Gerrymandering, literacy requirements, residency requirements and many other dirty tactics. The gerrymandering occurred when the state legislators took a look into county numbers, to see who controlled the vote in each county and then redrew the lines to help a white candidate win the election. How can Americans call this a democracy when they are obviously taking control of election in legal ways; so that elections were no longer fair and follow the constitution?  African Americans had to deal with a lot of different ordeals to get their freedom and once granted that opportunity they have the same racist's government officials making laws to prevent change and people their constitutional rights.
	The white southern state governments went from one law to another law to win elections; if they could have the majority vote they would use all their might to lower the number of voters so they would gain the majority vote. Processes like voter requirements would lower the number of African American voters; Literacy and residency requirements killed the African American vote just as much as the pole tax. When in slavery African Americans did not have the chance to move around or choose were they desired to live and once they get that opportunity they move often; this was a factor that the white government used to its advantage. Why else would there be a need for a residency restriction to vote? This is just another point that shows the federal government not being a true democracy; if this country was a true democracy a large number of those mishaps of the past might not have occurred. 
	The literacy test did have a good argument for being able to vote; how can someone vote for a candidate if they can not read the ballet? Still this restriction is taking away from what America, people's right to choose who is running this country. How can someone sit there and say that there is nothing wrong with a law that prohibits a man or woman from making the choice which to them seems right for president or public office; the simple answer is that they can not tell Americas to whom to vote for because it is their right. Literacy restrictions, gerrymandering, pole taxes, and residency requirements were all problems that lead to the disenfranchisement of the African Americans and some poor white Americans. 
	Disenfranchisement of African Americans hit an all time low when the trial of Plessy versus Ferguson came about; this trial in 1896 is one of the governments biggest mistakes over history, the court made "separate but equal" a house hold name; the court now made segregation legal and a world of trouble did that bring about. The federal government is bent on the understanding that this country is a democracy; well on that note is it not far for a man to decide that they want to sit in a specific seat, well they should be able to; this was not the case. Once "separate but equal" was know legal, white southerners started to have public lynching of African-Americans because of their opinions.
	Women had it slightly different in the eyes of the government when it came to democracy. Women did not gain the right to vote till 1920 and this came about because of a couple reasons; one reason is because of the progress women made in male oriented work during the war, another reason is because the politicians and public officials realized that women understood family oriented situations better then men, and the third is that women had become a large political part in associations and commissions trying to make change. Talk about democracy it took till 1920 to decide that ok women are smarter then we realize and understand what is needed to support and provide for a family; it was not till women started joining commissions and associations that they were able to get their word across and try and bring about change.
	If women would have not had such a large impact in the war, could it be possible that they would have never gotten the right to vote? With out the war women would still be considered inferior, stupid. Democracy gives every person a chance to speak their mind and have a say in the government but without the First World War they might be in the same ordeal till much later in U.S. history. Organizations like the women's league made a lot of changes for the better all over country and in many different aspects of the workplace. Until women received the power to vote they were considered lower then the African Americans theoretically because at least the African Americans had a choice in who was trying to get their vote. Many organizations like the Hull House, the Women's Bureau, National American Women Suffrage Associations and many others fought for change and had a great impact in change. These are the people that the U.S. government did no feel that they needed to vote. These women that work for the Department of Labor were not good enough to have a say in how this country is run.
	Why did it take a world war for this country to realize that this ideal of democracy was cutting out half the population's opinion at the polls? Women fought for the equal rights for all even when they were not given their equal rights by our True Democracy.  This is what white people were could call the true democracy just rolled from one races right to another or from one group to another. Once women came into power in organizations the government turned to the newly founded Americans; the immigrants.
	The rights of the immigrants were better then those of the African Americans; they did not have to deal with problems relating to their freedom in this country. But still in the eyes of the Anglo-Saxon government their words or votes must be controlled. Instead of using the lynching techniques or the violence threats, the governments thought of new ways to control the popular vote. Businesses were required now had to have a license to operate their business. The Anglo-Saxons who controlled who received the licenses would give the business owners a choice; they had to vote a certain way or they would not get their license so they could run their business. The politicians still controlled the elections just now the people having their rights taken away were the immigrants or newly founded Americans. 
	From pole taxes to literacy requirements, from business licenses to public lynching the true democracy just is not in America during the time period. Politicians used any means to keep the white Anglo-Saxon people in office. People are hiding behind a cloud they call the right to vote; the only people that did see the sunshine were those white Americans who had no worries about their rights being violated. The cloud was the hidden ordeals the voters of non-white decent had to go through; the idea sure they can have the right to vote because we can use our political power in office to get around their votes or make them vote a certain way. These tactics are not just, democracy was a joke to those people in office, democracy was just another way for them to charge Americans money while dealing with a industrial hierarchy. 
	So the immigrants were given the chance to vote; well some could read or understand what the ballets said but they got their chance to vote. The government started to study eugenics or study for the weak-minded American immigrants. The United States of American is not a dictatorship so why are the politicians allotting money to a program that is out to search for the perfect race; the perfect Anglo-Saxon race. The American dollar is going to the study for better white Americans; this is just another reason why American in the time was not a true democracy. American is not the stepping stone for the perfect white race, this country is here to grant all Americans freedom and their just due rights. The declaration does not start for life, liberty and the pursuit of white happiness; remember this country foundations come from all over the globe. Eugenics and sterilization laws were just a means to control the population and hide in under the cover of science. 
	Through the cover of science the government came up with sterilization laws to cut down on some of the populations; democracy grants people rights not takes them away. How can the government tell a man that he has to be sterilized so that he can not have children? In a true democracy this would not be the case, the government would be giving him and his children rights not killing these children before they are even born.
	Through arguments about sterilizations laws, politicians, voters, buying votes, to pole taxes, to disenfranchisement the American government between 1865 and 1929 was not a true democracy. A true democracy gives people rights to freedom and the right to choose to whom they want in their public office. The government has used scared tactics, and legally regulated how people could vote so as to save face and keep control over America. Some state governments did what ever it took to keep people in office; even to the point of public lynching of African Americans. It was a long rode to get to buy women's movements got their point across and strived to make great change in the history of the American people. Democracy is out for the people not for the politician and between 1865 and 1929 the American ideal of true democracy was just not there.  
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