Democracy, as most people think of it today, did not exist during the first few decades of U.S.

history.

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.
Democracy has been around for almost 2500 years since Athens, Greece became the first
democracy. The Romans also experimented with democracy, however it was more a republic,
and not a democracy. Around 1200 England laid the groundwork to become a republic. Later, in
the 1700's, United States of America became a democracy. During the first decades of our
premature nations' existence, it is hard to imagine that the United States would evolve to become
such a great democracy. A democracy others would prefer to believe with hypocrite reasoning.
When the U.S. first won its independence it was a united group of people left to defend for
themselves. This group was to become a nation and creating it involved more than winning
independence from Great Britain. In 1783, the U.S. was a country forming in its premature
stages. By 1787, this baby begins to develop, to become a nation. By 1787, people perceived that
their constitution represented what the people desired the U.S. to be; well at least the Federalists
presumed this. The Anti-Federalists watched for signs that threatened their republican principals
for which they so recently had fought the American Revolution. After winning the war the unity
and optimism among Americans did not translate easily or smoothly into the creation of a strong
central government. The Federalists and Anti-Feds were very opposed to each other's views. By
the late 1700's and early 1800's, a deep political division had occurred amongst the Federalists
and the Anti-Federalists. Anti-Federalists were mostly from the South, and were labeled
Jeffersonian. Their label came from the fact that they defended slavery and third President,
Thomas Jefferson, was known for owning herds of black slaves. Southerners held agreed with
many of Jefferson's views. The Anti-Feds and Republicans believed in strict interpretation of the
constitution, peaceful foreign relations, and a reduction of the role of the federal government in
the lives of average citizens. They were opposed to a strong central government and felt states
should hold the power to govern. The Federalists believed that the constitution should be loosely
interpreted and that America should follow the spirit of it to make laws and judgments.
Federalists wanted to organize the states so a strong federal power could govern over them in
order to keep enough power for the economy, war and ruling. Many were opposed to this form of
government because it so closely mimicked that of Great Britain. Between these two diverse
groups, their followers split the nation. The United States was geographically split North from
South. The North was home of manufacturers and industry. Farming was not the North's
economic base as was manufacturing. Crops would not grow year around due to freezing
weather; therefore slaves were of no need during off-seasons in farming. Here, it was not
economically safe or resourceful to own slaves, because of the fact that they were expensive to
acquire and maintain. Since slaves were mostly used in manual labor, their use in the North was
almost nonexistent. Blacks were not used in factories for fear of them gaining knowledge and
accessing power. In the South, large plantations and small farm owners used slaves for their
manual labor of the fields and common household work. Not every household in the South
owned a slave, as many people may believe. Only the wealthy could afford slaves. These slaves
abducted from Africa were characterized and treated equivalent to animals by their owners.
Since slaves were owned, they were property, and they were treated however their holders felt
fit. This was a great threat to democracy because it went against what democracy supposedly
stood for. Slavery, at the time, was disregarded in the constitution and therefore it can be
concluded that the government ignored it. There were greater threats to democracy during the
first decades of U.S. independence that are far more important to the significance of the period.
Americans held an optimistic view of the nation's manifest destiny.
The benefits and pitfalls that go hand-in-hand with a democratic society call for a fluid
and amendable constitution. Nevertheless, the strengths outweigh the weaknesses as evidenced
by the overall equitable conditions amidst the citizens, and the equal opportunities available to
all.