Suchergebnisse

The people's constituent power was among the most central ideas of the democratic revolutions during the late 18th century, at the time intrinsically related to the dilemma of liberation & freedom: the risk that freedom is lost unless the revolutions are institutionalized, & the risk that the constitution comes to embody a conditioned freedom unless liberation is pursued. This dilemma was central to the three conceptions of constituent power discussed in this article: (1) the Sans-Culottes' view of constituent power as permanently residing in the people & tied to liberation, (2) the radical democratic mechanisms of controlling legislative & executive power exemplified by the constitution of Pennsylvania, & (3) the American federalists' argument that constituent power is the expression of the people's will at the moment of adopting the constitution, after which it resides in the background & lose its importance. These ideas of constituent power are discussed & then related to the contemporary debate about it in the context of constitutional democracy. Adapted from the source document.