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Democracy as a predominant tendency in governmental systems nowadays has gone through a long course of history, securing itself in multiple principles laid out in various official acts. Among the keystones of the democratic system one cannot overlook the principles of majority rule and minority rights which are tightly interwoven with one another forming the basis of any democratic society.
In the simplest meaning democracy could be described as the principle of majority rule which in more specific terms constitutes “a means for organizing government and deciding public issues; it is not another road to oppression” (Majority Rule, Minority Rights, 2008). Careful reading of this definition triggers a consideration that there should be more than simply a majority ruling the state, otherwise the governing system would become one-sided and unfair to those who are outside the majority. Therefore, a second principle was introduced in order to add some balance to the state, and it is the principle of minority rights which presupposes that whatever the ethnic, religious, geographic, social, political or other background of people is, their basic human rights and fundamental freedoms would be nevertheless protected by the government following the policy of tolerance, and willingness to compromise. The two major democratic principles are closely interrelated and the parties involved into them can actually change places from time to time: the minority has the right to become the majority, thus the latter becomes minority in its turn according to the same rules which brought it to the position of the majority.
The Constitution of the United States of America stipulates the principles under discussion in several of its articles. The first and foremost example of their incorporation into the Constitution is the existence of three branches of government — legislative, executive and judicial (articles I, II, III). — with each of them being controlled by different bodies Such division helps to avoid the so-called “tyranny of the majority”, providing a system of checks and balances within the government.
Another example of majority rule presented in the Constitution can be viewed in the Twelfth Amendment to Article II, Section 2: “The person having the greatest Number of votes for President, shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed”. The candidate supported by the biggest number of voters shall represent their interests further on. Furthermore, according to the same source, not only should the President have the greatest support, but also “a majority of all the states shall be necessary to a choice”.
In practice, majority rule results in selection of the alternative which has the bigger part of the votes in society and that is how a great number of decision-making bodies are created. For instance, in the United States Senate, two official leaders are present — the Senate Majority and Minority Leaders. Those are elected by the parties who hold the majority and minority correspondingly and work as chief spokesmen for their parties, consult each other and work on satisfying the needs of supporters of both parties lest the interests of the minority are infringed upon.
Another aspect of implementation respect for the minority rights principle is obvious in the policy of protecting and increasing minority rights to education, healthcare, work, providing equal opportunities for men and women of different origins to participate actively in various spheres of life, allowing for their involvement in top governmental levels. A bright example is found in Condoleezza Rice being the second African American and the second woman to serve as Secretary of State.
Modern democracy steadily rests on the twin pillars of majority rule and minority rights which help to balance the interests of social groups and provide the necessary legal background for ensuring equality of people.
References
Majority Rule, Minority Rights. (2008). Principles of Democracy. Web.
The Constitution of the United States (1787). Web.
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