American Democracy: A Historical Analysis

Democracy in America, by Alexis de Tocqueville includes Tocqueville’s observations on what American society and culture was like during the 1830’s. Throughout his analysis of America, he draws many outlandish and interesting conclusions regarding what life was like during this time period. For example, in Chapter 18, Tocqueville remarks that citizens in democratic societies are independent, which makes them weak and subsequently uninfluential in society. He goes on to say that in order to combat this, associations must be established to combat individualism and to circulate new thoughts and ideas. All in all, Tocqueville’s claim is certainly valid, but only up to a certain point because there were a select few of individuals that were able to make an influence on society without the help from any associations.

One of the most important parts of America’s society is the way that the government runs. It can be governed in a more democratic fashion where the people have more control, or it can be ruled in a way that gives the government more control. Democracy and Republicanism are two differing ways that the government can be influenced. Democracy is the ability to make a decision by choosing the opinion of the majority over the minority. The idea of democracy has been changed frequently throughout history, but had a huge impact during the era of Andrew Jackson, which was from 1828 to 1836. Democracy could’ve benefited America more if used in times of war and bleakness in the country such as during the Gilded Age, World War II, and the Great Depression.

When the Framers of the Constitution met in Philadelphia, they came together with one common purpose in mind. They needed to form a fair and solid system of government that would stand the test of time; one that was both fair for the people and would not involve a monarchy. Each of these men had their own ideas on what would constitute this system, however, so many compromises had to be made. Together, the men gathered in Philadelphia created a federal system of government and drafted a constitution outlining this government. They took care in developing three branches of federal government with a system of checks and balances so that no one branch would gain too much power, thus avoiding any

The New Deal was thought up by none other than president Franklin D. Roosevelt. Roosevelt’s intentions were meant to help with the current depression at the time which lasted, for about three years. The new deal was meant to make “colored” and whites equal, but that was not the case. Many citizens of the south did not believe “Negros” should get paid minimum wage, but expected them to be paid a lower amount. Many whites opposed any thought of equality between them and African American’s, but that did not stop the (NRA)National Recovery Act. A work program produced from the NRA the (CCC) Civilian Conservation Corps helped many “colored” American’s, benefit from the New Deal. The United States also needed an escape from their current depression, so Roosevelt creates the Work-Relief Bill with equality as his goal.

In his first inaugural address, the president criticized the failure of the wealthy to save the nation (Document A). His first term was marked by the New Deal, which spurred the faltering economy by creating new jobs and providing much needed financial help to the jobless and the poor. The New Deal also put many people to work on the federal pay roll through the Civil Works Administration and provided assistance to the agricultural sector, which had been in a slump since the 1920’s. By the time Roosevelt was up for re-election in 1936, he had changed American society for the better, and was able to continue for a second term. During this time, he created a second New Deal to implement social justice programs; his main goal was to use the power of the government to solve the issues of the individual (Document B).

FDR tried to relief the blacks from the Great Depression but he didn’t have the intention to deal with social injustices  he did help provide some blacks jobs, but didn’t deal with social injustice because he didn’t want to lose the support from the Southern Democrats

They started to see the government try to help them by including them in New Deal programs. The Roosevelt administration attempted to include African Americans in the New Deal Programs. The Roosevelt administration was effective in garnering the support of African Americans despite its limitations.(Doc I.) FDR created employment opportunities under his New Deal program. Some New Deal programs addressed economic problems and other slowed recovery. (Doc D.) Addressing the main problems allowed for them to create organizations that would at the end result help the american

President Roosevelt's New Deal program during the 1930's failed to aid impoverished African-American citizens. The New Deal followed a long, historical chronology of American failures in attempts to ensure economic prosperity and racial equality. During the nearly seventy years after the conclusion of the Civil War, the United States faced a series of economic depressions, unmotivated Congress,' and a series of mediocre presidents. With the exception of Teddy Roosevelt, few presidents were able to enact anti-depression mechanisms and minimize unemployment. The America of the 1920's was a country at its lowest economic and social stature facing a terrible depression and increasing

This source is valuable because it provides historians with evidence that shows how the New Deal actually made employment much more difficult for African Americans. For example, the NIRA led to many blacks losing jobs, employment rates were lower than ever due to the tripling of Federal taxes, and many black sharecroppers faced numerous difficulties.as a result of various New Deal programs. The value of this source is limited because the author is writing for a libertarian organization, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt was a democrat. Also, the author does not include any personal account from African Americans that suffered the effects of the New Deal.

35) As Hoovers administration continued its business backing policies African Americans drifted towards Democrats. This accompanied a rapid urbanization that rose the percentage of African Americans living in cities from forty four percent to fifty percent in just 9 years, from 1930 to 1939. (Trotter, pg. 11) Seventy five percent of African Americans lived in the South, where Southern Democrats had oppressed and opposed African Americans since the end of the Reconstruction in the early 1870’s. (Americans at War) Despite the bad blood between African Americans and Democrats, they drifted in large numbers towards ‘the left’ as Roosevelt and his administration began to administer the “New Deal”. The New Deal was a series of programs and agencies set up to help the United States recover from the Depression. Over 20 million Americans sought assistance from agencies and programs such as Social Service. (Trotter, pg. 8) Many of these were African Americans, but over sixty percent of African Americans received no benefits from the New Deal due to a propensity towards racism in many of the local distributers of aid. (Trotter, pg. 11) According to labor laws supported by Roosevelt and the Democrats, it was not required to pay African Americans minimum wage. Roosevelt also refused to sign an anti-lynching bill into law, allowing lynching to remain legal in many Southern states, due to Roosevelts need of the Southern Democrats to maintain power in the Senate and

The framework of America’s government was forged in the spirit of democracy. The founding fathers envisioned a nation of free and equal persons and a country where everyone had a voice in the decision-making process. However, it soon became evident that not all people had a voice or even equal rights. Two groups excluded from government were women and African-Americans. These groups rose up to declare their rights to equality and freedom under the law. The women’s rights and abolitionist movements of the early 19th century highlight the strengths of ideology and weaknesses of practice of democracy in early America.

The Great Depression, which began in 1929, resulted with the United States, as well as many other countries, in the worst economic position it had ever encountered and it was the duty of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt to try to take charge and try to alleviate this crisis through a program he created which was known as the New Deal. Even though FDR was a Democrat himself, his policies were not completely partisan and drew criticism from both ends of the political spectrum. While the New Deal was a primarily left wing campaign through its huge show of government spending, it’s main goal was to protect capitalism and the free market and it also had a fair amount of important aspects on the right that promoted private business itself while

World War II invigorated the civil rights movement, galvanizing blacks who during the Great Depression had developed a greater awareness of their potential political influence. During the 1930s many blacks had switched their political affiliation from the Republican Party, "the party of Lincoln" that had freed the slaves, to the Democratic Party, and in 1936 had voted for Franklin Delano Roosevelt to show support for his New Deal programs. The outbreak of war in Europe in 1939 stimulated American industry and the demand for labor. As was the case with World War I, African Americans moved to industrial cities for employment but confronted discrimination in hiring and wages. A. Philip Randolph, president of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters,

The people eventually were fed up with the government taking no action, so they decided to elect Franklin Delano Roosevelt that promised a ‘new deal’. President Roosevelt was born into a wealthy family that was related to Teddy Roosevelt, the biggest politician of the early twentieth century. Franklin Roosevelt was elected into the senate in 1910, then was appointed to assistant secretary to the navy, elected to the Governor of New York and finally elected for President defeating Herbert Hoover on November eighth, 1932. After being elected, President Roosevelt announced his plan called the ‘New Deal’. The New Deal included the three Rs; relief, recovery and reform. Roosevelt wanted to include a fourth R rodeo, but his advisors recommended that he should not. President Roosevelt's wife Eleanor was a civil rights activist, but Franklin could not help her because he needed the support of the southern Democrats, who were for

"United States can be seen as the first liberal democracy. The United States Constitution, adopted in 1788, provided for an elected government and protected civil rights and liberties. On the American frontier, democracy became a way of life, with widespread social, economic and political equality. The system gradually evolved, from Jeffersonian Democracy or the First Party System to Jacksonian Democracy or the Second Party System and later to the Third Party System. In Reconstruction after the Civil War (late 1860s) the newly freed slaves became citizens, and they were given the vote as well." (Web, 1)