{"id":122744,"date":"2024-11-06T16:15:15","date_gmt":"2024-11-07T00:15:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//?post_type=article&#038;p=122744"},"modified":"2024-11-06T16:15:21","modified_gmt":"2024-11-07T00:15:21","slug":"election-results-democracy-fix","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//democracy/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//06/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//election-results-democracy-fix","title":{"rendered":"Can We Fix Our Democracy?"},"content":{"rendered":"/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Democracy is a simple concept: People exercise their collective agency to rule themselves so they can ensure their own well-being. Democracy is the opposite of autocracy, serving as a disavowal of monarchs and militarists claiming the right to govern people without their consent.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Not surprisingly, <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.pewresearch.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//global/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//28/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//representative-democracy-remains-a-popular-ideal-but-people-around-the-world-are-critical-of-how-its-working/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">democracy is a very popular idea</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>. A Pew Research Center survey of people in 24 nations in 2023 revealed that 70% of people support direct democracy, with the percentage rising to 77% support for representative democracy. However, since democracy is designed to equalize power among people, it tends to be a work in progress. Even in functioning democracies, <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//protectdemocracy.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//work/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//the-authoritarian-playbook/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">the powerful may subvert democracy</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> and use it to their ends, while those who have less power struggle for their fair share.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>The United States/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014<a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//usindo.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//information-on-u-s-and-indonesia/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//about-u-s/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">the world/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s second-largest democracy</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014was once regarded as a shining example of that form of government. But now, people around the world are disappointed in the nation/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s approach to democracy. A <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.pewresearch.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//global/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//06/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//is-u-s-democracy-a-good-example-to-follow/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">2024 Pew Research Center survey</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> of people in 34 nations concluded that only about 21% of those surveyed believe the U.S. offers a good model of democracy for the world, while 40% believe the U.S. used to be a source of inspiration but is no longer. The view from within is hardly better: Most people in the U.S. tend to distrust the government, with only about <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.pewresearch.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//politics/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//06/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//24/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//public-trust-in-government-1958-2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">one-quarter of Americans trusting it</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> at any given time since 2007.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Their suspicions are justified, as <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//people/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//bastian-herre/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Bastian Herre</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, a researcher at <em><a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//ourworldindata.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Our World in Data</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>, explains: /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cThe data suggests that the U.S. is less democratic now than it was a decade ago, even though it remains much more democratic than it was for most of its history./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Because of the incredible promise it holds, democracy is fraught with contradictions and often triggers deep dissatisfaction when it doesn/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019t live up to its ideals. Indeed, <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//ourworldindata.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//less-democratic/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">democracy is declining all over the world</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>. Herre found that the number of people living in democracies fell from 3.9 billion in 2016 to 2.3 billion in 2023, and that more people are living in countries that are autocratizing./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u00a0</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<div class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-block-image/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<figure class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"aligncenter size-large/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><img decoding=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"async/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" width=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" height=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"546/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"data:image/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg+xml,&lt;svg xmlns=&quot;http:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.w3.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2000/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg&quot; viewBox=&quot;0 0 1024 546&quot;&gt;&lt;/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg&gt;/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" data-src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//01-Autocrats-1024x546.jpg/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" alt=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"An image of five photographs with a heading that reads &quot;Around the world, more countries are falling to autocratic rule.&quot; The men pictured are Victor Orban, Hungary; Donald Trump, United States; Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel; King Salman, Saudi Arabia; Kim Jong Un, North Korea. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" 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https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//01-Autocrats.jpg?resize=442%2C236&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 442w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//01-Autocrats.jpg?resize=200%2C107&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//01-Autocrats.jpg?resize=250%2C133&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 250w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//01-Autocrats.jpg?resize=24%2C13&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 24w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//01-Autocrats.jpg?resize=36%2C19&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 36w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//01-Autocrats.jpg?resize=48%2C26&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 48w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//01-Autocrats.jpg?w=1400&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 1400w/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" sizes=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//noscript><figcaption class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-element-caption/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><em>Photos by Getty Images</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//figcaption></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//figure></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//div>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>To understand why democracies are in decline, it/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s worth examining how systems are enacted. The devil is often in the details. In the space between our decision-making and the enactment of those decisions, nefarious and power-hungry actors can hijack processes and sow the seeds of autocracy.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>There are many ways to strengthen democracy amid a rise in authoritarianism. It begins with voters making wise choices: /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cPeople can work toward making [the U.S.] more democratic by voting for pro-democracy candidates,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d Herre notes. Indeed, we tend to equate democracy with voting/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014the most tangible way representative democracy is enacted and a critical step in choosing the public servants who make decisions on our behalf. Beyond that, Herre suggests that to make democracy more inclusive, what/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s needed is /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201csupporting pro-democracy organizations, and expressing their support for democracy in protests and conversations./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Unfortunately, contemporary systems of representative democracy have become popularity contests in which participants are called upon every couple of years to pick between exceedingly narrow choices. In the U.S. especially, the question of <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//interactive.aljazeera.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//aje/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2016/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//us-elections-2016-who-can-vote/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//index.html/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><em>who </wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>gets to vote</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014and therefore participate in democracy/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014has been debated and legislated for centuries.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Further, there are structural obstacles to voting baked into the U.S. Constitution, which is the definitive document laying out the rules of democracy and within which are embedded those devilish details that determine the responsiveness of the system. Even after adding various amendments to right historical wrongs, <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//constitution.congress.gov/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//browse/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//article-2/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//section-1/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">the Constitution still references /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201celectors/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> rather than individual voters when it comes to electing a president, and allows for the undemocratic, racist, and <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//opinion/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2019/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//09/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//electoral-college-voting-movement/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">complicated Electoral College system</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>. The Constitution also specifies the undemocratic makeup of the <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.senate.gov/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//about/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//origins-foundations/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//senate-and-constitution.htm/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Senate</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, a powerful body that allows smaller, whiter states to have the same power as larger, more racially diverse ones./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u00a0</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>In other words, as Elie Mystal, justice correspondent for <em>The Nation </wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>and author of <em><a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//thenewpress.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//books/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//allow-me-retort?ref=risingupwithsonali.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s Guide to the Constitution</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>, told <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//democracy/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2022/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//01/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//constitution-work-in-progress/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">YES! in 2022</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, the U.S. Constitution is /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201ca flawed document that needs to be perfected in order to achieve a level of fundamental fairness and equality that was /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2026 missing from the initial draft of it./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>He points out that none of the original authors of the Constitution or its amendments were women./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201c[T]he same goes for LGBTQ communities. The same goes for racial, ethnic, and religious minorities in this country./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>If U.S. democracy is exclusionary by design, is it even a democracy at all?&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<iframe width=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"560/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" height=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"315/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.youtube.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//embed/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//5ROU91aOOko?si=VrWPfWLHFVLe48O_/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" title=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"YouTube video player/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" frameborder=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"0/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" allow=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" referrerpolicy=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"strict-origin-when-cross-origin/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" allowfullscreen></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//iframe>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<h2 class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-block-heading/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" id=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"democracy-for-some-c1649622-d076-4590-8a3e-5d75bc2ecebc/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Democracy for Some</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//h2>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>The U.S. Constitution was inspired not only by <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//education.nationalgeographic.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//resource/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//greek-influence-us-democracy/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">ancient Greek ideas of democracy</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, but also by formations that had greater physical and temporal proximity to the nation/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s modern founders. A <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.govinfo.gov/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//pkg/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//CHRG-100shrg83712/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//pdf/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//CHRG-100shrg83712.pdf/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">1987 Senate resolution</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> acknowledged how the /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201coriginal framers of the Constitution /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2026 are known to have greatly admired the concepts, principles and government practices of the Six Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d which today is referred to as the <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.haudenosauneeconfederacy.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//influence-on-democracy/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Haudenosaunee Confederacy</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cOur /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2018Founding Fathers/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019 based the U.S. Constitution on the Haudenosaunee Law of Peace,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d says Fern Naomi Renville, an enrolled member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota and Omaha nations, and a Seneca-Cayuga storyteller from Minnesota. Renville adds that <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//guides.loc.gov/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//finding-benjamin-franklin/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//autobiography/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Benjamin Franklin/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s 1791 memoir</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> acknowledges this debt to the Indigenous peoples of the land.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cAt the time when all of the /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2018Founding Fathers/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019 were having conversations, there were Native people at the table who were consulting /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2026 [and] giving input to the colonists, who weren/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019t all getting along, and they were being advised to come together in the way that the Haudenosaunee Tribes had,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d Renville says.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Through their experience, Indigenous advisers showed the power in forming a union of disparate groups and modeled how settler colonialists could do the same to counter the power of the British Crown. However, Renville says some of the differences between the U.S. Constitution and the Haudenosaunee Law of Peace were deliberately designed to preserve power for those who already had it: wealthy white men.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cWhen people learn about the actual inspiration for the U.S. Constitution, it changes how we think about inclusion in those rights,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d says Renville. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cIt changes how we might think about the Bill of Rights, which enshrines what are basically Haudenosaunee principles for good&nbsp;governance. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2026 Just learning that might prompt people to do some growing around how we include everyone /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2026 men and women, rich and poor./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<div class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-block-image/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<figure class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"aligncenter size-large/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><img decoding=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"async/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" width=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" height=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"410/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"data:image/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg+xml,&lt;svg xmlns=&quot;http:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.w3.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2000/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg&quot; viewBox=&quot;0 0 1024 410&quot;&gt;&lt;/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg&gt;/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" data-src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington-1024x410.jpg/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" alt=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"Two photos side by side, labelled &quot;then&quot; and &quot;now.&quot; The picture on the left is a black and white photo from the 1963 March on Washington. The image on the right is from 2022, with protestors crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"lazyload wp-image-122761/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" data-srcset=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=1024%2C410&amp;quality=45&amp;ssl=1 1024w, 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https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=24%2C10&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 24w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=36%2C14&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 36w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=48%2C19&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 48w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?w=1400&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 1400w/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" sizes=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//><noscript><img data-recalc-dims=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" decoding=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"async/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" width=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" height=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"410/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=1024%2C410&#038;quality=45&#038;ssl=1/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" alt=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"Two photos side by side, labelled &quot;then&quot; and &quot;now.&quot; The picture on the left is a black and white photo from the 1963 March on Washington. The image on the right is from 2022, with protestors crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"lazyload wp-image-122761/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" srcset=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=1024%2C410&amp;quality=45&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=300%2C120&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=768%2C307&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=673%2C269&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 673w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=442%2C177&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 442w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=200%2C80&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=250%2C100&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 250w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=24%2C10&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 24w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=36%2C14&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 36w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?resize=48%2C19&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 48w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//02-Washington.jpg?w=1400&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 1400w/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" sizes=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//noscript><figcaption class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-element-caption/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><br>ÎÞÂëÊÓƵ than 200,000 people participated in the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in Washington, D.C., on<br>Aug. 28, 1963, demanding equal voting and civil rights. In March of 2022, demonstrators crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala., commemorating the 57th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, when civil rights protesters led by John Lewis were attacked by state troopers. The 2022 marchers were also supporting the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, which would strengthen the hard-won Voting Rights Act of 1965. The act has yet to pass.&nbsp;<em>Photos by Getty Images (left); AP Images (right)</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//figcaption></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//figure></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//div>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Tribes centered women in their democratic structures, and did not operate as capitalists or enslavers. In contrast, the Constitution/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s framers imported European ideas of women/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s disenfranchisement, human enslavement, and even landownership and property rights.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>When <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.pbs.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wgbh/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//americanexperience/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//features/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//vote-not-all-women-gained-right-to-vote-in-1920/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">white women in the U.S. eventually won the right to vote</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> in 1920, they were strongly influenced by Indigenous women who enjoyed political power and decision-making authority over land and food. In 2016, women/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s studies historian Sally Roesch Wagner told <em><a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.washingtonpost.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//posteverything/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2016/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//24/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//millions-of-women-voted-for-hillary-clinton-they-have-the-iroquois-to-thank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">The Washington Post</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> </wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>that early white suffragists such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cbelieved women/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s liberation was possible because they knew liberated women, women who possessed rights beyond their wildest imagination: Haudenosaunee women./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cThe Haudenosaunee Law of Peace that the Constitution is based on relies on the power of the clan mothers as the ultimate authority,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d says Renville. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cThat is the one piece that got left out in the application of these ideas on the U.S. Constitution and so that might be a part of why these ideas haven/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019t been as successfully applied in our country that we have now./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>For example, the U.S. Constitution does not enshrine reproductive justice or the right to an abortion because, according to Mystal, <em>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201c</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>the Constitution did not treat women as full people./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>People of color and especially Black people were also excluded from the writing and passage of the <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.archives.gov/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//milestone-documents/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//13th-amendment/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">13th</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.archives.gov/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//milestone-documents/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//14th-amendment/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">14th</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, and <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.archives.gov/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//milestone-documents/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//15th-amendment/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">15th</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, which ended enslavement, granted citizenship to African Americans, and legalized voting rights for Black men, respectively. And yet, white supremacist forces continued to curb the democratic rights of people of color until the civil rights movement forced passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Calling it /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cthe most important piece of legislation ever passed in American history,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d Mystal attributes Barack Obama/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s 2008 presidential win to the Voting Rights Act. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cForty years after the civil rights movement, we end up with the first Black president,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d he says.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>U.S. democracy has suffered from constant push-and-pull factors, with excluded communities fighting for and winning rights, and reactionary forces working to undo those gains. Mystal laments how, after Obama/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s election, the U.S. Supreme Court /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201ceviscerated/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d the Voting Rights Act in 2013 and spawned a slew of <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.brennancenter.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//our-work/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//research-reports/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//effects-shelby-county-v-holder-voting-rights-act/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Republican-led efforts to disenfranchise voters of color</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> and dilute the impact of their votes.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>The exclusionary nature of U.S. democracy remains one of its central problems. Today, <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.vera.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//news/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//the-chains-of-slavery-still-exist-in-mass-incarceration/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">mass incarceration</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> is seen as a continuation of slavery, with millions of people who are <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.sentencingproject.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//reports/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//the-color-of-justice-racial-and-ethnic-disparity-in-state-prisons-the-sentencing-project/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">disproportionately Black and Brown</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> forced to <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.aclu.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//news/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//human-rights/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//captive-labor-exploitation-of-incarcerated-workers/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">work for little to no compensation</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> and <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.themarshallproject.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2019/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//06/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//in-just-two-states-all-prisoners-can-vote-here-s-why-few-do/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">nearly entirely excluded from voting</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>History offers many lessons in strengthening democracy: After the U.S. incorporated the <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.forbes.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//sites/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//kellyphillipserb/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2018/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//05/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//just-before-the-elections-a-history-of-the-poll-tax-in-america/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">poll tax</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, a pay-to-play patchwork system that required people to pay taxes in order to vote, women, people of color, and low-income people overcame the corruptive power of money. Eventually, <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//freespeechforpeople.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//harper-v-virginia-and-the-wealth-primary-as-a-new-poll-tax/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Annie E. Harper</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, a retired domestic worker, successfully challenged the poll tax through the 1966 <em>Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections </wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>Supreme Court ruling.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>And yet, the overrepresentation of wealth in politics remains one of the greatest challenges to U.S. democracy. A <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.pewresearch.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//politics/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2023/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//09/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//19/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//money-power-and-the-influence-of-ordinary-people-in-american-politics/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">2023 survey by the Pew Research Center</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> found that 83% of Republicans and Republican-leaning people in the U.S. and 80% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning people in the U.S. feel that big-money donors and special interest lobbyists /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201chave too much influence on decisions made by members of Congress./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>What Renville considers /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cmost terrifying/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d today is /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cthe rulings that recognize corporations as equal to people, so that economic structures have more legal weight than a human being./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<blockquote class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Democracy is healthiest when there is greatest participation and power sharing, especially among those who have been historically excluded./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//blockquote>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Gerald Horne, who holds the Moores Professorship of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston, agrees money has too much influence in politics. He offers a salient piece of advice to those seeking to strengthen democracy: /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cYou would have to democratize the economy to begin with,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d he says. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cWhen you don/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019t democratize the economy, the malefactors of great wealth/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014as [Theodore] Roosevelt used to say/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014are able to use their economic strength to put a thumb on the scale with regard to politics./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d A weighing scale is an apt metaphor for who has influence in U.S. democracy: The political power of historically marginalized people has been outweighed by the nefarious power of wealth and capital.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Labor unions are microcosms of democracy and offer useful examples of how direct democracy via inclusive decision-making can counter the power of money. Horne says in the early part of the 20th century, the American Federation of Labor (AFL) tended to organize skilled workers but not low-wage workers such as secretaries in their quest for labor rights and better wages and benefits.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>In contrast, the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cwas organizing across the board, from top to bottom/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d in auto plants, Horne adds. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cObviously the CIO model was more democratic than the AFL model./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d Ultimately, McCarthyism eroded the CIO, which was then absorbed by the AFL. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cWe have not learned that much from unions,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d says Horne.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Furthermore, unions are relatively small formations in which direct democracy is a more viable prospect than in nation states. Most of the world/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s democracies are representative, which means that people choose leaders to make decisions on their behalf rather than making every decision themselves. In contrast, direct democracies allow people to directly choose policies that govern them.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<div class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-block-image/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<figure class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"aligncenter size-large/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><img decoding=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"async/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" width=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" height=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"410/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"data:image/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg+xml,&lt;svg xmlns=&quot;http:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.w3.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2000/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg&quot; viewBox=&quot;0 0 1024 410&quot;&gt;&lt;/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg&gt;/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" data-src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion-1024x410.jpg/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" alt=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"Two photos side by side. On the left is a black and white photo of Pat Schroeder speaking against the Hyde Amendment in 1977 surrounded by pro-choice activists. On the right is a color photograph of contemporary activists protesting for abortion access in the United States. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"lazyload wp-image-122762/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" data-srcset=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=1024%2C410&amp;quality=45&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=300%2C120&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=768%2C307&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=673%2C269&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 673w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=442%2C177&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 442w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=200%2C80&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=250%2C100&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 250w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=24%2C10&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 24w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=36%2C14&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 36w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=48%2C19&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 48w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?w=1400&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 1400w/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" sizes=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//><noscript><img data-recalc-dims=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" decoding=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"async/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" width=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" height=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"410/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=1024%2C410&#038;quality=45&#038;ssl=1/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" alt=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"Two photos side by side. On the left is a black and white photo of Pat Schroeder speaking against the Hyde Amendment in 1977 surrounded by pro-choice activists. On the right is a color photograph of contemporary activists protesting for abortion access in the United States. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"lazyload wp-image-122762/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" srcset=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=1024%2C410&amp;quality=45&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=300%2C120&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=768%2C307&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=673%2C269&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 673w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=442%2C177&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 442w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=200%2C80&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=250%2C100&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 250w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=24%2C10&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 24w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=36%2C14&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 36w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?resize=48%2C19&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 48w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//03-Abortion.jpg?w=1400&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 1400w/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" sizes=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//noscript><figcaption class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-element-caption/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><br>The Hyde Amendment, which bars federal funds from being used for abortion care, was first introduced in 1977,<br>four years after <em>Roe v. Wade</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>, and was the first major blow to legal abortion in the U.S. That year, Rep. Pat Schroeder (D-Co.) lent her voice to an anti-Hyde rally on the Capitol steps. Today, reproductive rights advocates protest against the Supreme Court/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s 2022 decision <em>Dobbs vs. Jackson Women/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s Health Organization</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>, which overturned <em>Roe v. Wade</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em>. <em>Photos by Getty Images</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//figcaption></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//figure></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//div>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<h2 class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-block-heading/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" id=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"direct-democracies-lead-the-way-d3e95098-e90c-474e-997a-3eb5280dfa60/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><strong>Direct Democracies Lead the Way</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//strong></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//h2>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>When it comes to large nations in particular, representative democracy seems more efficient than, say, how a small nation such as <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.weforum.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//agenda/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2017/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//07/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//switzerland-direct-democracy-explained/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Switzerland</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014one of the world/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s&nbsp;only direct democracies/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014is run. A nation of fewer than 9 million, the Swiss elect seven councilors every four years to carry out the day-to-day functioning of the government and participate in popular votes up to four times a year on specific measures. It is the closest to a direct democracy the world has today.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>At more than 333 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous nation on the planet, behind India and China. It is also the third-largest in size, behind Russia and Canada. By virtue of its sheer population and geographic size, U.S. democracy is complicated. A republic of 50 states and various territories, the federal government shares sovereign power with state governments. It makes little sense for residents of, say, Maryland, to vote on an issue that disproportionately impacts Oregonians.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>About <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//ballotpedia.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//States_with_initiative_or_referendum/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">half of all states</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> have some form of Switzerland-like direct democracy, allowing residents to regularly cast votes on ballot measures/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014a sound approach, at least on paper, to ensuring state-level governments remain responsive to their voters. But there is no direct democracy at the federal level, even for something as simple as choosing the president.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>The Electoral College, where citizens vote for state-level delegates, is arguably one of the biggest tools used to dilute the power of democratic federal representation. Those delegates in turn cast ballots for the president. This is one step removed from representative democracy and could even be considered <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.realclearpublicaffairs.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//articles/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//06/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//28/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//thinking_constitutionally_about_the_electoral_college_1040962.html/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">democracy by unfair proxy</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>The complexity of the Electoral College system becomes most apparent every four years, when adults attempt to explain to the children around them that the path to the White House winds its way through a handful of so-called /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cswing states./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d Watch the face of a young person contort in confusion over the fact that a Michigan ballot is far more consequential than one from California, and try to explain why such a system is allowed to define itself as democratic.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>The fact that the Electoral College makes it possible for a presidential nominee to win office even if they lose the popular vote/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014which has happened <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.history.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//news/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//presidents-electoral-college-popular-vote/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">five times in U.S. history</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, including twice in the past 25 years/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014has prompted many to call for its abolition. After all, minority rule is a hallmark of autocracy. About <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.pewresearch.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//short-reads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2023/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//09/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//25/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//majority-of-americans-continue-to-favor-moving-away-from-electoral-college/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">two-thirds of all people in the U.S.</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> favor ending the Electoral College and want direct democracy/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014at least when it comes to choosing the president.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cWe don/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019t have to get into these complicated arguments about economic democracy and the power of billionaires,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d says Horne. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cYou can just start with the Electoral College. It/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s obvious that the Electoral College reflects a belief on the part of the framers of the Constitution that those small percentages of a potential electorate that could vote were not trustworthy and so therefore you needed this intervening force /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2026 to /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2018correct/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019 any /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2018mistakes/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019 that voters had made./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>There are efforts underway to end the Electoral College system, the most promising of which is the<a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.nationalpopularvote.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"> National Popular Vote Interstate Compact</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, a state-by-state effort to end the winner-take-all electors system practiced by 48 out of 50 states. Although the Constitution specifies the use of electors, it doesn/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019t require states to award all electoral votes to the winner of the statewide popular vote. Each state can therefore pass a law switching to proportional apportionment of electors and, as of <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.youtube.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//watch?v=vMkQvyq47Vk&amp;list=PLGbqlTjpDNNb20jhhWxYi77SkAEOeTeBm&amp;t=435s/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">April 2024</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, 17 states and the District of Columbia/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014representing 209 Electoral College votes/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014have done so. When states representing the majority of electoral votes/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014270/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014pass such laws, the Electoral College will effectively become a popular vote.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<h2 class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-block-heading/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" id=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"democratizing-the-supreme-court-eaa85316-d622-40d0-b889-89a8130daa67/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Democratizing the Supreme Court</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//h2>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Another obstacle to people/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s ability to rule themselves is the increasingly unaccountable U.S. Supreme Court, where only nine people with lifetime terms make decisions affecting hundreds of millions/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014a dynamic veering uncomfortably close to autocratic rule.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>The Court is prone to financial corruption, with justices having been found to <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//fixthecourt.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//06/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a-staggering-tally-supreme-court-justices-accepted-hundreds-of-gifts-worth-millions-of-dollars/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">accept lavish gifts</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> from wealthy friends and then <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//thehill.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//opinion/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//judiciary/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//4789421-why-the-supreme-court-loves-to-reward-the-rich-and-powerful/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">rule in their favor</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>. It is also severely exclusionary in terms of race and gender/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014out of 116 justices since the nation/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s founding, <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.cnn.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//politics/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//supreme-court-justices-dg/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//index.html/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">only eight have not been white men</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>. ÎÞÂëÊÓƵover, justices are <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.msnbc.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//the-mehdi-hasan-show/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//the-mehdi-hasan-show/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//supreme-court-congress-republican-majority-rcna92394/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">increasingly setting policy</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> instead of interpreting laws/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014in effect becoming proxy legislators.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cOne of the reasons why Republicans prefer to do certain things through the Supreme Court is that they can/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019t actually get them done at the ballot box, because they/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019re unpopular,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d says Mystal, who sees the Supreme Court as one of the biggest counterbalances to U.S. democracy. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cPeople support women/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s rights. People, now, support gay rights. Taking those away politically is difficult. That/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s why they want the courts to do it./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>There are numerous ideas around reforming the Supreme Court, including <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//apnews.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//article/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//abortion-ketanji-brown-jackson-us-supreme-court-government-and-politics-only-on-ap-8adc9a08c9e8001c8ef0455906542a60/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">setting term limits for justices</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014a popular idea/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2014and creating a binding code of conduct. President Joe Biden has backed both these ideas, but so far, none of these efforts appear likely to come to fruition.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<div class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-block-image/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<figure class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"aligncenter size-large/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><img decoding=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"async/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" width=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" height=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"410/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"data:image/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg+xml,&lt;svg xmlns=&quot;http:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.w3.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2000/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg&quot; viewBox=&quot;0 0 1024 410&quot;&gt;&lt;/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//svg&gt;/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" data-src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback-1024x410.jpg/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" alt=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"Two photographs side by side, labelled &quot;Then&quot; and &quot;Now.&quot; On the left, and black and white photograph from the Alcatraz Island AIM occupations. On the right, a color photograph of activists holding signs that say &quot;#LandBack.&quot; /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"lazyload wp-image-122763/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" data-srcset=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=1024%2C410&amp;quality=45&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=300%2C120&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=768%2C307&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=673%2C269&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 673w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=442%2C177&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 442w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=200%2C80&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=250%2C100&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 250w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=24%2C10&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 24w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=36%2C14&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 36w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=48%2C19&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 48w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?w=1400&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 1400w/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" sizes=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//><noscript><img data-recalc-dims=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" decoding=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"async/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" width=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"1024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" height=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"410/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" src=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=1024%2C410&#038;quality=45&#038;ssl=1/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" alt=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"Two photographs side by side, labelled &quot;Then&quot; and &quot;Now.&quot; On the left, and black and white photograph from the Alcatraz Island AIM occupations. On the right, a color photograph of activists holding signs that say &quot;#LandBack.&quot; /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"lazyload wp-image-122763/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" srcset=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=1024%2C410&amp;quality=45&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=300%2C120&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=768%2C307&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=673%2C269&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 673w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=442%2C177&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 442w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=200%2C80&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 200w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=250%2C100&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 250w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=24%2C10&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 24w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=36%2C14&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 36w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?resize=48%2C19&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 48w, https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//i0.wp.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wp-content/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//04-Landback.jpg?w=1400&amp;quality=90&amp;ssl=1 1400w/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" sizes=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//noscript><figcaption class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-element-caption/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"><br>Activists from the American Indian Movement occupied San Francisco/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019s Alcatraz Island for 19 months, starting in 1969, demanding that unoccupied federal land be returned to its Indigenous stewards. Today, #LandBack has become a rallying cry from North America to the South Pacific for Indigenous communities to reclaim their ancestral lands. <em>Photos by Getty Images (left); AP Images (right)</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//em></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//figcaption></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//figure></wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//div>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<h2 class=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"wp-block-heading/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" id=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"indigenous-democratic-principles-0107f73c-605d-468f-86eb-a232cbb748b0/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Indigenous Democratic Principles</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//h2>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cI believe that how we treat land is how we treat people,/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d says Renville. The sentiment captures another major difference between the U.S. form of democracy and the Indigenous democratic principles on which the U.S. Constitution was loosely based: Landownership, which is the root of individual financial accumulation and capitalism, had no place in the Haudenosaunee Great Law of Peace.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Per Renville, /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cthe recognition of the /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2018rights of nature/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u2019/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d is a critical piece of inclusion in the U.S. political system that can strengthen democracy. Humans exist within the context of their environment and consequently thrive when their environment is respected. Modern-day democratic systems tend not to consider the rights of nature. Yet, as Renville asserts, we need to begin incorporating /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cthe right of a river or a forest or a mountain or so forth to exist and to be preserved and protected for the future/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d into our democratic system, as the Haudenosaunee did.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>There is precedent for such an idea. In 2008, <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.tandfonline.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//doi/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//pdf/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//10.1080/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//10455750802575828#:~:text=Article%201%20of%20the%20new,and%20its%20processes%20in%20evolution./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Ecuador became the first nation</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> in the world to vote on a new Constitution that centered the rights of nature and of natural systems to /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cexist, flourish, and evolve./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d Remarkably, the idea originated in the U.S. and was pushed by a grassroots organization from San Francisco called the <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//pachamama.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//environmental-rights/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Pachamama Alliance</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, and drafted with the help of the <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"http:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//files.harmonywithnatureun.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//uploads/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//upload1133.pdf/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Community Environmental Law Defense Fund</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, which is based in Pennsylvania. Today, the <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.garn.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a> is leading a worldwide effort to incorporate similar clauses in the constitutions of all democracies.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Indigenous principles centering women and nature offer a pathway toward stronger democracy in the U.S. Renville cites the leadership of <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.elwha.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//departments/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//tribal-government/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//324_frances_g-_charles/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">Frances Charles</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, the chairwoman of the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe in the Northwest U.S. Charles was /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201ca huge part of the force that brought down that Elwha Dam successfully and restored their ancestral beach, and restored the salmon run/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d so that people could sustain themselves, according to Renville. /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cThat kind of female leadership, I see it as being very connected to the ability to advocate for land and water, and to take care of our lands and people./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d After all, care for people and the land is the ultimate measure of success in any democracy.&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<p>Democracy is healthiest when there is greatest participation and power sharing, especially among those who have been historically excluded. Or, as Herre concluded in a <a href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//ourworldindata.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//less-democratic/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" target=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"_blank/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"noreferrer noopener/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/">2022 analysis of democracies globally</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//a>, /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201cPeople turned previous autocratic tides by advocating relentlessly for governing themselves democratically. We have done it before, and can do it again./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/u201d&nbsp;</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>To live up to its stated ideals, the United States must finally cede power to the people.</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//p>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":122758,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","categories":[4],"tags":[649,1531,2262,3268],"article-type":[],"master-category":[467],"special-series":[],"type-of-work":[942],"class_list":["post-122744","article","type-article","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-democracy","tag-democracy","tag-constitution","tag-2024-election","tag-indigneous-rights","master-category-democracy","type-of-work-analysis"],"acf":[],"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//yoast.com/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//wordpress/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//plugins/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//seo/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744// -->/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<title>Can We Fix Our Democracy?</wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//title>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<meta name=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"description/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" content=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"To live up to its stated ideals, the United States must finally cede power to the people./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<meta name=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"robots/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" content=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<link rel=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"canonical/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" href=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//democracy/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//06/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//election-results-democracy-fix/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<meta property=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"og:locale/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" content=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"en_US/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<meta property=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"og:type/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" content=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"article/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<meta property=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"og:title/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" content=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"Can We Fix Our Democracy?/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<meta property=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"og:description/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" content=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"To live up to its stated ideals, the United States must finally cede power to the people./wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<meta property=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"og:url/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" content=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"https:/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744///wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//www.yesmagazine.org/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//democracy/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//2024/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//11/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//06/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//election-results-democracy-fix/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" /wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744//>/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/n<meta property=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"og:site_name/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/" content=/wp-json/wp/v2/article/122744/"YES! 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