Was Colonial America Democratic or Not?

Throughout the colonial era many different governments were established in the colonies. Even though the colonies were all technically ruled by the British King this did not stop the colonists from setting up there own governments. These governments were all democratic and had features that we still use today in our democratic republican government. Therefore it is clear that the colonist's governments were more democratic then undemocratic.

Two major aspects in a democratic government are the ability to vote and the ability to voice your opinion. Early colonial government was not unified based on your location there were different methods of government for example a New England resident is allowed to attend town meetings which was where wealthy male land owners discussed the problems with their town. These meetings eventually led to citizens voting on ways to change their community and electing fellow citizens to represent them in the General Court. A democracy guarantees certain basic freedoms these include freedom of speech, press and religion. During the colonial era these freedoms were established rather quickly. The main reason people moved to America was to escape religious prosecution so there was some degree of religious freedom. Freedom of press was established in 1733 with the John Peter Zenger trial. This trial showed that truth can be published in the newspaper and the person who writes can not be punished no matter what is published in the paper. These things are the basis of our government today. The colonists paved the way with there democratic ideas.

Even though the colonies were more democratic then undemocratic they still had flaws which made them seem undemocratic. The two biggest flaws in the colonies democratic government was the presence of voting restrictions and the fact that slavery was huge in the south. In today's government anyone no matter what your race, gender or financial status is can vote. However during the colonial era only wealthy male land owners could vote. This is a huge flaw since the opinion of every citizen should be valued. The other major flaw was slavery. In the south approximately 20% of the population was made up of slaves. Slavery was very big in the south due to the size of some plantations. However during the era of enlightenment it was stated that everyone is born with certain rights and these can not be taken away. Plantation owners did not care about that only the amount of work the slaves got done. Every colony did not have slaves so it can be said that only certain colonies were undemocratic.

The 1700s truly paved the way for our democratic government that we use today. Even though the colonies had some undemocratic flaws it is evident that the colonies were more democratic then not. Also it is clear the success the early colonial government had on our lives today.

Sources

Bailey A., Thomas, David M. Kennedy, and Lizabeth Cohen. The American Pageant. 11th Edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1998.