Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Never Gonna Change? An examination of the 1901 Alabama Constitution
Abstract
Alabama’s 1901 Constitution was drafted to codify white supremacy by removing African Americans from the voter rolls. Alabama did not invent voter suppression, nor does it have a monopoly on policies that deny African Americans, minorities, and poor people the right to vote. This chapter provides examples of how and to what effect disenfranchisement has been used in Alabama and other communities throughout the United States. This chapter also chronicles Alabama’s unique constitutional feature that centralizes policymaking in the capitol – further suppressing democracy at the local level to the advantage of affluent interest groups entrenched in Montgomery. Consolidating policymaking at the Capitol has fostered antipathy and disaffection among Alabamians. Further, the voice of the few over the voice of the many has become a feature in contemporary American politics, as states gerrymander their legislative districts, creating legislative bodies that are not representative of the broader public. The framers of Alabama’s 1901 Constitution created an enduring document whose spirit lives on – despite the 2022 recompilation. The Alabama Constitution has cultivated a political culture where voters are skeptical of substantive constitutional reform because Alabamians have learned that the state government should not be trusted and does not deserve more power.
First Page
129
Last Page
150
Publication Date
9-1-2024
Recommended Citation
Aguado, N.A. (2024). Political Indifference and the Withering of Democracy in Alabama. In N.A. Aguado (Ed.), Never Gonna Change? An examination of the 1901 Alabama Constitution (pp. 127-148). North Alabama Digital Press @ Collier Library.
Included in
American Politics Commons, Other Public Affairs, Public Policy and Public Administration Commons
Comments
About the Author
N. Alexander Aguado, Ph.D., is chair of the Department of Politics, Justice, Law, and Philosophy and professor of political science at the University of North Alabama.