The Great Debate: Federalists and Antifederalists
Regarding the ratification debate, I post as a small farmer in the 1780’s hence my support for antifederalists. Antifederalists oppose the ratification of the constitution and favor the Articles of Confederation.
The new constitution proposes a strong central government and weak state governments. This poses a great threat to the future of the United States as a central government has the potential of being corrupt, seizing more power, and enforcing tyranny (Locke & Wright, 2019). This is evident in the tyranny of British power, which not so long-ago subjugated U.S. citizens. Centralized power threatens the nation’s belief in the importance of limiting the government’s exercise of power. Specifically, the president’s vast new powers including veto powers over decisions of the people’s representatives pave the way for political corruption. Additionally, the Constitution empowers the new legislature to have increased fiscal authority and more specifically, the right to raise taxes (“Timeline of the Essential Federalist Papers,” n.d.). It is my fear as a farmer that before long Congress will pass oppressive tax laws that would be detrimental to the majority middle class and poor.
I strongly oppose the ratification of the new constitution as it fails to protect the liberties of individuals in its provisions. The antifederalists base their stand on explicit protection of individual rights that cannot be infringed upon by the state (Gilder Lehrman Institute Staff, n.d.). Failure by the federalists to provide for the protection of individual rights and freedoms point to a wicked ploy to roll back the gains made for the ordinary American people during the revolution.
My opposition of the ratification of the Constitution is because it does not provide for the interests of the average American farmer and those of an individual.
References
Gilder Lehrman Institute Staff. (n.d.). The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. Retrieved from https://www.gilderlehrman.org/history-now/differences-between-federalists-and-antifederalists.
Locke, J. L., & Wright, B. (2019). The American yawp: a massively collaborative open U.S. history textbook. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Timeline of the Essential Federalist Papers. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://teachingamericanhistory.org/resources/fed-antifed/timeline-essfed/.