Name: Theodoros Tsatsos

DB Q essay outline 

During the 17th sanctuaries settlers began to enter America in search of religious freedom, land, wealth, as slaves and in search of better lives 

Most of this settlers were mainly English, however there were also Swedes , Germans ,Dutch,, French and also slaves from Africa. 

Introduction Paragraph 

Background 

During the colonial era America was divided into thirteen colonies which later became the united states of America in1776 

During this period America was not a democratic society. This meant that people living in these regions barely exercised their democratic rights ,they were not properly represented in the government and the supreme power was vested only on a certain group of people 

Position :During the colonial period the American colonies were not democratic and democracy was not enacted

Reason #1 : voting rights were only awarded to a certain group of people  Reason #2: limitations of property ownership  Reason #3: slavery

Body paragraph #1 

Voting rights were only awarded to a certain group of people 

Reason #1 

Evidence from documents to back reason #1 

Evidence from documents to back reason #1	Significance
Evidence 1 (doc 2) : Only the white men were allowed to vote	The Europeans created laws that prohibited American natives, African Americans and women from voting. They did in order to minimize the opposition and maintain supriority. Voting is democratic right and every one should be allowed to exercise it
Evidence 2( doc 6): All the legislature representatives were white men	Only the white men were allowed to vote and since the legislature was made up of representative chosen by the majority the white men occupied all the positions. Failure to equally represent everyone in the legislature is an act of denying them their democratic rights.
Evidence 3 doc3 : Most of the laws made were in favor of the white people and the colony	The governors were controlled by the legislatures since they controlled their salaries. Although the governors were elected locally they were under the colonial influence. the colony’s democracy was undermined since the governors did not work for the good common people

Body paragraph #2 

Reason #2: limitations of property ownership 

Reason #2 

Evidence from documents to back reason #1	significance
Evidence #1 doc 2 :Only the white men were allowed to own property	During the colonial period, European took over the land owned by the native Americans making it theirs. They also made up laws that ensured that the white men alone were to own properties
Evidence #2 doc 4: Married women could not own property or collect wages	During the colonial period married women were perceived as property owned by their husbands. As a result no woman was supposed to own any property or collect wages, the custody of the children. Women were not recognizes as equal American citizens and this was denying them their democratic rights
Evidence #3 doc 5 , African Americans and slaves were not allowed to own property	Slaves obtained from other parts of the world or within America were not allowed to own any property. They were also forced in to forced labor with little or now pay. These slaves were denied their democratic right to exercise free labor and live free lives

Body paragraph #3 

Reason #3 

Slavery and slave trade 

Evidence from documents to back reason #3 

Evidence from documents to back reason #3	Significance
Evidence #1 doc 5: Slave were forcefully evicted from their land ,taken from their families and sold as properties	Slaves were treated more like properties and not as human they were forcefully evicted from their land shipped and sold to work for the white people. Disrespecting human rights and wellbeing is undemocratic
Evidence #2 doc 5: Slaves were transported using ships where they were overcrowded tied up with chains ad had little to eat	Slaves were abducted in large numbers and since they had to be shipped they were tied in chains and transported in horrible conditions. Forcing people to work against their wish and offering insufficient or no compensation is undemocratic
Evidence #3 doc 1: Slaves had no right to practice their religion and cultures those who were not Christians were forced to convert or they had to face a death sentence	Although the Maryland act of toleration was passed in 1694, the law only protected the Christians. Other religions which denied the divinity of Jesus were persecuted. Right to worship in accordance to ones beliefs and religion is a democratic right and colonial government in America failed to recognize it

Thesis: 

American colonies were not democratic and democracy was not enacted during the colonial period. 

Key point: 

Women, Native Americans and African Americans were denied their democratic rights to vote and only the white men were allowed to vote. 

The government was mainly controlled by the European since they were they were the majority in the legislature 

Property were owned by the white men 

They practiced slave trade where people were abducted from their homes sold and forced into slavery 

Relation to the world today: 

The word to day is totally different as compared to the colonial era. Every citizen regardless of the gender or race are allowed the exercise their democratic right to vote 

The supreme power is vested on the people where the government is made by the people of the people and for the people 

Anyone can own property regardless of race or gender 

Today slavery is illegal and people exercise free labor . 

Conclusion 

Name: Theodoros Tsatsos 

Introductory paragraph 

American colonies refer to the Thirteen Colonies, which are now referred to as the United States of America since 1776 (doc: 2) These colonies were occupied by settlers who were search freedom of worship (doc: 1). Others came as slaves while others were in search of wealth and better lives these colonies were under the European government. During this period America was not a democratic society, meaning that people living in these regions were not effectively represented in the government. . The British Parliament dictated on matters pertaining, political rights, religion, property ownership, free labor and social equality of the colonies (doc: 3). These colonies were obligated to answer to the European government failure to which there were repercussions 

Body paragraph #1 

During the colonial period, only the white men were allowed to vote at the local assemblies where all legislature representatives were white males (doc: 6). Women and other races including naive Americans and Africans were left out and they could not exercise voting or participate in the political decision which is a democratic right (doc:4). In addition, Europeans who came from Great Britain were treated better compared to those who came from England, Scotland or Ireland. Only the white males were entitled to own properties in the colonies (doc: 2). The Native Americans and Africans were subjected to slavery and forced labor with little or no payment (doc: 5). They did not also enjoy privileges such as education and proper medical care which were set aside for the Europeans 

Conclusion paragraph 

In conclusion, it is evident that the American colonies were not democratic and democracy was not enacted during this period. The American citizens had no power since the supreme power was only vested in a certain group of people and they could not exercise either their political or social rights. 

Work cited 

Document 1: Maryland act of toleration (1649) 

Document 2: voting qualifications (1763) 

Document 3: The Fundamental Order of Connecticut 1639 

Document 4: Title Page from The Lady’s Law (first published on 17 33) 

Document 5: plane of a slave ship 

Document 6: Engraving of Virginia’s House of Burgesses