RATIFY ING THE CONST ITUT ION

CHAPTER 5SECTION 3

CONTROVERSIES OVER THE CONSTITUTION

•Special convention- organized to determine whether or not they supported the Constitution. •Citizens of each state elected delegates to attend the special convention• 9 out of the 13 states had to ratify the Constitution

FEDERALISTS(GEORGE WASHINGTON, JAMES MADISON, ALEXANDER HAMILTON)

• division of powers & system of checks and balances would protect Americans from the tyranny

• Federalists received heavy support from:

• cities-merchants, skilled workers, & laborers believed a STRONG federal government would improve trade/economy.

• Small states with weak economies.

ANTI-FEDERALISTS

( SAMUEL ADAMS, PATRICK HENRY, RICHARD HENRY LEE)

ANTI-FEDERALISTS

• Opposed having a strong centralized government & were against the Constitution• Feared a strong central government would ignore the

rights of the majority.• Single government could NOT manage affairs of a large

country. • Constitution lacked protection of individual rights.• Received strong support from rural areas and states

with strong economies like New York.

• Federalist Papers: series of 85 essays defending the Constitution• appeared in New York newspapers in 1787 & 1788. •Written by Alex Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay. • Considered the best political works on the US Constitution ever written.

THE OPPOSING FORCES

• Letters from the Federal Farmer:

(antifederalist) • written by Henry Lee• Antifederalists believed

that people’s rights need to be protected: • freedom of speech, press,

religion; • guarantees against

unreasonable searches of people, their homes

• right to trial by jury.

• Made a strong argument in support of a Bill of Rights.

THE OPPOSING FORCES (CONTINUED)

THE BILL OF RIGHTS LEADS TO RATIFICATION

• proposed US constitution had no guarantee that the government would protect the rights of the people or the states. • Many felt that without

a bill of rights, the nation would not adopt the new government

WHY PEOPLE DEMANDED A BILL OF RIGHTS

• Antifederalists argued: • The Constitution weakened

state governments.• Citizens needed a written

guarantee of freedoms

• The Federalists eventually agreed to add a Bill of Rights if the states agreed to ratify the Constitution.

ADOPTION OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS

• Congress submitted 12 amendments to the state legislatures for ratification.• December 1791: 3/4

of states had ratified 10 amendments: Bill of Rights.

ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL?(NOT REALLY)

• Native Americans and slaves were excluded.• Women not mentioned• Many states permitted free blacks to vote, but

the Bill of Rights offered them no protection against discrimination & hostility.