Democratizing Freedom
The Dream of Equality
The American Revolution was a struggle for national independence.
America became a society of democracy and abandoned the principles of hereditary rule and fixed status.
Inequality had been embedded into colonial society, but the American Revolution has changed that, allowing equality in rights. B. Expanding the Political Nation
The Revolution did not change for those who were not free, but for freemen, the democratization of freedom was dramatic.
The term “democracy” had multiple definitions, including a government that was directly governed by the people. This term was used more often during the American Revolution to inspire the struggle for independence.
Election campaigns slowly became debates on societal issues. They were not only discussed by the elite, but also by the people from the lower classes, who demanded the rights to vote and elect their officers. C. The Revolution in Pennsylvania
Almost the entire elite class of Pennsylvania opposed independence from Britain, causing them to fear being attacked.
Thomas Paine and Thomas Young associated with the Second Continental Congress, who opposed the independence, but they hoped to change their views.
After independence, Pennsylvania adopted a new constitution, which allowed an annually elected legislature. In order to vote, they must be paying taxes, and they abandoned the officer of governor. D. The New Constitutions
Every state adopted a
As reported by the Declaration of Independence, all men have the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness, and that the government was made to defend those rights. “That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed” (Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776). This shows political change because it says that the government gets its power from the people. Before the revolution, King George and Parliament were not acting as if their power was coming from the people, because they took no heed of the people. Essentially, America was changing the type of government.
Many radical changes occurred with the American Revolution such as making the anti-slavery and women’s rights movements of the nineteenth century possible. It “changed the personal and social relationships of people, including the position of women, but also destroyed aristocracy as it had been understood in the Western world for at least two millennia.” (Wood 8).The people had to work together with each other, even the women and children, for the war. They all wanted the freedom from Britain, and unified for a victory. After, they felt freer and more equal and that
Many began producing rhetoric speeches and poetry that showed their desire for independence and the anger that they were building up because they were turned down for their representation. A pamphlet titled the Common Sense by Thomas Paine brought upon the ideas that they should have independence from Britain and a republican government instead-this pamphlet became extremely popular and sold over 150,000 copies. The acts that did not give proper representation led the colonists to boycott and think individually for their country-it was a primary source to the revolutionary movement including the Revolutionary War that ended with success of the Americans.
The expansion of franchise was extremely important in the growth of democracy as well as the emergence of political parties. As property qualifications needs to vote were removed in the majority of the states, white men from lower classes were given a say in who the leaders should. This increased the growth of democracy as more people were given a chance to participate in the politics and elections of America. This is also led to the emergence of parties as the new voters tended to vote for those who were dressed simply and had popular ideas. This would lead to the wealthy notables losing
Throughout the 1760’s, the Sons of Liberty influenced a major increase in colonial revolutionary thinkers; through conducting successful demonstrations
war, it is a sign of radical action. Britains' army was four times as big
The American Revolution did a lot more than change the method of governance. After the war the spirit of equality weakened old habits of difference. The new political opportunities offered by the creation of state government led more
The American Revolution was the point of change in the world. It was the first time that a democratic government was developed and tested in a time where monarchies ruled Europe and it was the time when the world saw that the concept of democracy could lead to the fundamental change in society, specifically politically, socially, and economically. However, even though it was the point in change for the world, to what extent did it change American society politically, socially, and economically in the period between 1775-1800? The answer is that political, social, and economic effects of the American Revolution impacted society to different extents and established ideas that would later influence future movements and changes in America.
Throughout our cake, we had two major themes that were evident, social injustice and political grievances. To demonstrate social injustice, we used medals for the Latin American Revolution, Chains for the American Revolution, and a tennis ball for the French Revolution. To represent economic inequality, we used tea bags for the American revolution, bread for the French revolution and money for the Latin American Revolution. For the American Revolution, The chains represented the role African American slaves played in the revolution.
Democracy, as it is used today, means “ the people rule.” A democracy is a form of government ruled by the people of the country through elections and representation. A democracy is really a form of republic known as a democratic republic. A republic is a government where officials elected by a small group of people that make the important decisions.
As a society changes and develops, so do its beliefs and ideals. Freedom and liberty are concepts that are constantly changing, and the American Revolution brought upon major changes to their definitions in the colonies. Two major changes of beliefs were in the concept of slavery and also the roles of women in society.
A democracy is a government by the people, in which the power is vested in the people themselves. The people then elect representatives who conduct their power in a free electoral system. The Declaration of Independence, which says that all men are created equal, was written on the premise of a democracy.
Democracy is defined as “A system of government in which ultimate political authority is vested in the People.” The Declaration’s
Perhaps the most revolutionary part of the Glorious Revolution was that the throne had been taken over without a shot fired. But what this truly meant was the ending of absolute monarchy in England. Now rulers had to abide by the laws of their country as well as its people.
After the American Revolution, the U.S. Constitution ruled over all individual 's equivalent rights and flexibilities. Pure people now got more prominent securities, physical discipline was dispensed with in a few wards, and the quantity of jails became exponentially.