Of, by, and for the elite: The class character of the U.S. Constitution
Jan 5, 2023
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Examining the fear of democracy by the founding fathers, the disdain for popular participation among the ruling class, and the perpetuation of suffering and inequality by the US Constitution. Exploring the class dynamics and tensions in colonial society, the factors and leadership during the American Revolution, and how the U.S. Constitution was designed to benefit the elite while excluding the majority of the population.
The US Constitution was created to restrict and prohibit involvement of the masses of people in decision-making, reflecting the founding fathers' disdain for popular participation in government.
The Constitution aimed to guarantee the power and wealth of the elite by enshrining class oppression, legalizing slavery, protecting economic interests of the wealthy, and including only limited guarantees of rights.
Deep dives
The Class Character of the US Constitution
The podcast episode discusses the class character of the US Constitution, highlighting that it was created to restrict and prohibit involvement of the masses of people in decision-making. The founding fathers had a disdain for popular participation in government and sought to guarantee the power and wealth of the elite. They feared the concept of democracy, which they referred to as tyranny of the majority. The Constitution aimed to defend the minority class of affluent property owners against the anticipated tyranny of the majority.
Conditions Leading to the US Revolution
The podcast explores the social and economic conditions of the colonial era that led to the US Revolution. It reveals extreme oppression and class disparities, with the majority of society experiencing super exploitation and oppression. The local elite in colonial society found itself squeezed between the wrath of the lower working classes and the British Empire. The struggle for independence from the British Crown was motivated by factors such as deflection of anger towards the British, accumulation of wealth by the local ruling class, confiscation of loyalists' property, and the nullification of the proclamation of 1763.
The Drafting of the Constitution
The podcast focuses on the drafting of the US Constitution and the motivations behind it. The Founding Fathers, property-owning white men, aimed to guarantee the power and privileges of the ruling class while creating a facade of liberating the masses. The Constitution legalized slavery, protected economic interests of the wealthy, and included only limited guarantees of rights. The debates during the Constitutional Convention primarily revolved around the interests of the wealthy, disregarding the concerns of the have-nots. The podcast emphasizes the need to understand that the Constitution was a document meant to enshrine class oppression.
Contrary to the mythology we learn in school, the founding fathers feared and hated the concept of democracy—which they derisively referred to as “tyranny of the majority.” The constitution that they wrote reflects this, and seeks to restrict and prohibit involvement of the masses of people in key areas of decision making. The following article, originally written in 2008, reviews the true history of the constitution and its role in the political life of the country.
The ruling class of today—the political and social successors to the “founding fathers”—continues to have a fundamental disdain for popular participation in government. The right wing of the elite is engaged in an all-out offensive against basic democratic rights and democracy itself. This offensive relies heavily on the Supreme Court and the legal doctrine of constitutional “originalism”. Originalism means that the only rights and policies that are protected are ones that are explicitly laid out in the constitution, conforming with the “original” intentions of the founders. As the article explores, this was a thoroughly anti-democratic set up that sought to guarantee the power and wealth of the elite.
Read the full article here: https://www.liberationschool.org/class-character-of-the-u-s-constitution/
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