the development of the democracy of the United States
Post
As I read this week’s notes on the development of the democracy of the United States, I could not help asking myself two questions. The first question is, what really is a nation? The second question asks, does culture in a nation really serve the people in it justly? I answered the question myself to the best of my ability.
Through examining the United States path to democracy, I concluded that a nation constitutes a selected group of populations that have managed to suppress the interests of other populations within the same geographical boundaries. Apparently, Europeans migrated from the hostile European content to America and instituted a government that would serve them best. Notably, most of these settlers were running from harsh social and environmental conditions in the European, or at least, in search of a better community to live. While they were escaping oppression, they imposed oppressive governance on the Americans natives and the Africans they enslaved. As such, it emerges that the elite and privileged populations within a nation oppress other minor population in the development of a sovereign state as evidenced both in the USA and Europe nations.
The elite populations, however, cannot manage to rule over other populations without the assistance of their culture. A new culture may come into a host culture and grow with time till it expands to become the dominant culture. Once the alien culture becomes dominant, the host culture often disintegrates and disappears, or falls into the background. In the end, the interests of the dominant culture prevail over those of the host or subdued culture. The implication is that only the interests of the dominant groups are addressed, while those of the dominated culture is neglected at varying thresholds until liberal democracy is established. Thus, I concluded that attaining a national culture of inclusion is a long journey that nations must pass undertake.
