Why is it important to balance majority rule with minority rights?

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To start off, what exactly are majority rule and minority rights? Well, Majority rule is a way of organizing government where citizens freely make political decisions through voting for representati... ves. Whereas minority rights are rights that are guaranteed to everyone even if they are not apart of the majority. These rights cannot be eliminated by a majority vote. Now the question is, what’s the concept? Basically, political decisions should stem from the will of the majority, expressed by means of a free vote. The majority’s decision must heed the protection of minorities. When Thomas Jefferson expressed the concept of democracy, he said “All . . . will bear in mind this sacred principle, that though the will of the majority is in all cases to prevail, that will to be rightful must be reasonable; that the minority possess their equal rights, which equal law must protect and to violate would be oppression.” Majority rule is limited in order to protect minority rights because if it were unchecked it probably would be used to oppress persons holding unpopular views. Unlimited majority rule in a democracy is potentially just as despotic as the unchecked rule of an autocrat or an elitist minority political party. There are several instances in which the concept of majority rule with respect to minority rights has played a significant factor in American government and policy. One example is the case of Plessy v. Ferguson 1896. In this case, Homer Plessy, a man who appeared white, but was one-eighth black, was arrested in Louisiana for sitting on the white railroad car and refusing to move to the black railroad car. According to Louisiana law, all persons with a black blood-line, regardless of how small, were to be considered black and must be segregated from the white people. After being released from prison, Plessy took his case to the US Supreme Court. The court decided that there could be segregation as long as long as it was of equal standards. This case demonstrates the will of the majority to allow for segreg [Show More]

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