Essay - Stephen Douglas and the Kansas-nebraska Act Democracy is Often Something...

STEPHEN DOUGLAS

AND THE KANSAS-NEBRASKA ACT

Democracy is often something Americans take for granted. Living in a free, democratic society is someth*****g that is often not thought about until something happens to rock our pillar of security. The definition of democracy as a practical form of government w***** questioned when Congress passed the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854. Stephen Douglas introduced th***** Act.

Douglas included in his bill a provision for "popul*****r sovereignty" in Kansas and Nebraska. This provision stated that all questions of slavery in the new territories were to be decided by ***** settlers rather than by Congress. This idea that the settlers - the people - would decide ra*****r than Congress brought about much debate. Democracy is defined first and *****emost as "government ***** the people, rule of the majority." Douglas *****ok the position ***** democracy was a process bit an outcome ***** he argued for this process. His position - ***** by Process - was countered by t***** ministers and others who maintained a Democracy by Scripture.

***** ***** have been given power or authority by the government from our Nation's *****mative years. The problem - for lack ***** a better word - lies in ***** fact that people do not all th*****k the same. Believe the ***** or follow ***** same moral code. Slavery ***** a moral issue just as much, if ***** more so, than a political issue. Politically it became an issue because the people *****mselves could not make a unified ***** decision. They needed ***** higher entity ***** such as Congress - to ***** ***** them. Many people simply needed direction or someone to tell them what to do.

The distinction between God's law and civil law soon ***** an ***** that is still ***** settled. In Douglas' time there was slavery. People were bought ***** sold and forced to work without any regard to them as people. Today, babies are slaughtered without any respect ***** human life. Slavery ***** legal. Abortion is legal. How "civil" a ***** *****re we that we allow mothers to kill their own fetal children? How "civil" were we in Dougl*****' ***** that we *****ed people ***** become a commodity?

The position of ***** by ***** ***** to light another debate. If God's law was supreme, why bother ***** vote? Why was citizen participation even necessary? Was it not just a pretense? Even Abraham L*****coln questioned th***** in his Second Inaugural Address. He stated, "The judgments of the Lord, are true and righteous altoge*****r."

Self-government, L*****coln asserted, meant that no one person could own *****. He *****, "As I would *****t be a slave, so I ***** not ***** a master. This expresses my idea of democracy." ***** was an issue that was either right or wrong - in a ***** sense ***** depending on how the people voted. *****ever, *****s could not vote so their voices ********** never he*****rd. Their *****s were never counted. ***** ***** that others were deciding the futures of the slaves.

Democracy -