Disadvantages Of Athenian Direct Democracy

In a paper for a seminar on education in Poland (Diane Ravitch 1996), a scholar, author, and former assistant U.S. secretary of education stated: “A representative democracy is a constitutional democracy when it operates in accordance with a constitution that restricts the powers of the government and ensures fundamental rights to all citizens”. In such a society, the majority rules, and minorities' rights are upheld through institutionalized law and the rule of law. I concur that contemporary representative democracies outperform Athenian direct democracy in terms of democratic values. Modern representative democracies have developed to solve some of the constraints and difficulties faced by direct democracy, even if Athenian direct democracy

Greek direct democracy, in comparison, had a smaller range of participants. Only a particular subset of adult male citizens, referred to as “Athenian citizens”, were given full political rights and permitted to actively participate in the Assembly. This prevented sizable segments of the population from having a direct voice in decision-making, including women, slaves, and non-citizens. The different interests and concerns of the entire population were not sufficiently represented by Athenian direct democracy as a result. Modern representative democracies' greater inclusivity makes it possible to represent the needs and desires of the populace in more detail. Modern democracies can capture a greater variety of opinions and give different social groups' interests more weight by involving a wider range of citizens in the political process. This inclusiveness helps to improve decision-making and create policies that are more sensitive to the welfare of the entire

While this system gave the people a direct say in politics, it also carried the danger of majority tyranny, when the rights and interests of minority groups might be ignored or violated. The fragility of minority rights was further exacerbated by the exclusion of women, slaves, and non-citizens from the democratic process because these groups lacked established mechanisms for representation or the defense of their interests. Constitutional Protections: Many contemporary representative democracies have fundamental laws or constitutions that protect people's rights and freedoms, especially those of minorities. These constitutions frequently lay the groundwork for administration and enshrine fundamental rights that are unaffected by momentary majorities and are inviolable. Even in the face of shifting political environments, constitutional provisions provide a solid foundation for guaranteeing minority rights are protected. Checks and balances are used in modern representative democracies to prevent the concentration of power in one branch of government. This is known as the separation of powers. No one body is able to unilaterally force its will on the minority thanks to the separation of powers between the executive, legislative, and judicial departments. Because it establishes a