OCR Text |
Show MINORITY REPRESENTATION. In a democracy whose extent is so great that all the citizens cannot participate partici-pate in the government, government by representatives becomes the best possible substitute for a pure democracy. Republics Re-publics that are of any greater extent than cities must resort to the representative representa-tive system. In the United States this is what has been done, both in the General Government and in the State and Territorial Terri-torial Governments. A representative government being the best, the more thoroughly representative it is the better it will necessarily be. That which' is desirable in a democracy is that every citizen shall have a voice in the control of governmental affairs. This cannot be done so long as a very considerable portion por-tion of the citizens are excluded from all participation in the management of public pub-lic affairs. Such a state of things can only be remedied by a minority representation. repre-sentation. A minority representation would in no way affect majority rule. In a free government the majority will always al-ways rule and should rule, but - the rule of a majority without a representation of the minority, is class rule ; and what is more, majority rule very frequently becomes be-comes minority rule as Mill points out. It happens in this wise. The majority of the voters elect their representatives j who have control of the government, but they elect them by a very small majority, and when these representatives come to pass upon certain measures which are. I proposed as laws, they are passed by a bare majority of the majority, and that to which a great majority of the electors, who are the true source of power and who grant the authority under un-der which the representatives act are opposed. A minority representation would have.rectified such a solecism in legislation. The minority as well as the majority are considered in arranging the basis of representation in any election district, and this has to be. Representation Representa-tion is allowed to a certain number of citizens. This being the case, is there anything like a fair representation of the citizens" constituting an election' district where those who are in a small majority are given the entire number of representatives repre-sentatives ? There surely is not. Let us illustrate locally. The Legislative representative repre-sentative district of which Salt Lake county forms a part is composed of this county and of the counties of Morgan and Davis. This district sends six Representatives Repre-sentatives to the Legislature, and they are all of one political party the People's, Peo-ple's, or Mormon party. This party poll, in round numbers, say' 5,500. The non-Mormon voters of the' -district it is safe to say number l,500r-making the total number of voters in' the district 7,000, which makes -the unit of representation repre-sentation 1,1603, which gives the minority minor-ity in this district 333 votars in excess of the - number required to constitute consti-tute a unit of representation. This minority with this excess is absolutely ab-solutely without- any representation representa-tion in the Territorial Legislature. But this is not all. The majority are in reality allowed a representative on a unit of representation of 916. This calculation calcu-lation is based upon the number of voters in the district and takes no account of the relative wealth of the majority and the minority. It is foreign to the genius of American institutions to base representation repre-sentation upon property, and it is .well that it is so. But this does not prevent a proper consideration of the rights of property, especially when the revenue derived, from taxes is raised to a very considerable extent from the property of the minority, such being the case in this representative district. Now, according to the true spirit of a republican government govern-ment and on the true theory of representation, repre-sentation, are not the minority in this representative district entitled to a Representative Repre-sentative in the Legislature ? And is not the same true of the minority in this city as regards representation in the City Council ? This theory of minority representation repre-sentation applies to every other election district where .the minority equal in number num-ber the unit of representation. Where the minority are less than the number required to constitute the unit of representation, repre-sentation, minority representation is im-. practicable, unless the Territory shall be made into one entire district for members of both the Council and the House. There can be no objection to allowing minority representation in the Legislature, Legisla-ture, and it is a right which the minority,-when minority,-when they are equal in number to the unit of representation established by law , have a right to demand, and it can be refused re-fused only for despotic - reasons, although those reasons are given by a majority. The last Constitutional Convention which sat to consider of a State Constitution for Utah, made provision for minority representation, and many of the members of the Convention are members of the present Legislature. If it were desirable to allow minority representation under a State Government, why should it not be desirable to have the minority represented under a Territorial form of government? The reasons which made it proper in one case must make it proper in the other. The Legislature would do well to give the matter their immediate and careful consideration, both as a matter of policy on the part of the majority in Utah, and as a matter of simple justice.1 If, as Franklin said, honesty is the best policy, so it may be said that in politics justice is the best polidy. Let the Legislature, Legis-lature, which is entirely composed of the representatives of the majority in Utah, save one member, do unto others as they wouldthat others should do unto them. |