GOVT2306: Tyranny of the Majority - Violating Fundamental Rights

Instructor: Tom Hanna, Fall 2025, University of Houston

2025-09-28

The Democratic Paradox

A History of Majoritarian Harm to Minorities

The foundational principle of democracy is majority rule.
This very principle can become a tool for oppression when unchecked.
This is known as the “Tyranny of the Majority.”
It occurs when the majority’s passion or interest overrides minority rights and the public good.

A Republic’s Struggle with Majoritarian Faction

After Reconstruction, white supremacist majorities used democratically elected state legislatures to enact a system of rigid racial hierarchy.
Goal: Dismantle the 13th, 14th, & 15th Amendments and codify white supremacy into law.

The Supreme Court upheld state-mandated segregation in a 7-1 decision.
It established the infamous legal doctrine of “Separate but Equal.”
Violation of Rights: This doctrine was a legal fiction, violating the 14th Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause, as “separate” was never equal.

Fueled by public fear after Pearl Harbor, Executive Order 9066 authorized the incarceration of ~122,000 people of Japanese descent.
Two-thirds were U.S. citizens, incarcerated without trial or evidence of wrongdoing.

The Supreme Court upheld the policy, deferring to military judgment and claims of “necessity.”
Violation of Rights: The decision ignored the 5th Amendment (Due Process) and 14th Amendment (Equal Protection).
Justice Jackson’s dissent warned the ruling would “lie about like a loaded weapon.”

Assimilation and Eugenics as Democratic Policy

From the 1880s to 1996, a system of mandatory boarding schools, passed by Parliament, aimed to assimilate over 150,000 Indigenous children.
Violation of Rights: The policy led to cultural genocide, systemic abuse, and thousands of deaths, violating rights to family, life, and cultural identity.

From the 1920s-70s, provinces passed legislation allowing for the forced sterilization of individuals deemed “unfit.”
Violation of Rights: These eugenics-based laws, supported by the electorate, disproportionately targeted Indigenous women and violated their right to bodily autonomy.

[Image of a DNA helix icon]

Modern Majoritarianism and Minority Rights

Turkey enacted a “Wealth Tax” that was applied at radically different rates based on religion.
Non-Muslims faced confiscatory rates up to 10x higher than Muslims.
Violation of Rights: A clear violation of property rights and the principle of equal treatment under the law.

Several European nations have passed laws, often with broad public support, restricting religious attire like face-covering veils.
Violation of Rights: Critics argue these bans violate the fundamental right to freedom of religion and expression, disproportionately targeting a small minority.

These cases show democracy is more than majority rule. To prevent tyranny, liberal democracies rely on safeguards to protect fundamental rights.

Constitutional Rights

Independent Judiciary

Rule of Law

“The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority.”

- Lord Acton