IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. RES. 513 

Recognizing the vital importance of democracy in the United States and 

encouraging State and local governments to aide citizens in reflecting 

on the contributions of democracy to a more free and stable world. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 23, 2019 

Mr. RASKIN (for himself and Mr. ARMSTRONG) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing the vital importance of democracy in the United 

States and encouraging State and local governments to 

aide citizens in reflecting on the contributions of democracy to a more free and stable world. 

Whereas 2,000 years after the ancient Greeks laid the 

groundwork for democracy, the founders of the United 

States built an even greater democratic system of government, a democratic republic, propelling the United States 

to become the world’s most advanced Nation in human 

history; 

Whereas the model of government set forth in the United 

States Constitution has been reproduced around the 

world; 


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•HRES 513 IH 

Whereas the system of Government of the United States, the 

world’s oldest constitutional democracy, has made significant contributions to the a more free and stable world; 

Whereas the system of Government of the United States, the 

world’s oldest constitutional democracy, has made significant contributions to the a more free and stable world; 

Whereas according to Freedom House, despite the expansion 

of democracy worldwide, today more than one in three 

people in the world do not live in States considered free; 

Whereas the Constitution of the United States and the Bill 

of Rights, with the addition of the Reconstruction Era 

amendments, including the 14th, 15th, and the 19th 

Amendments, enshrine the rights and civil liberties of 

citizens of the United States, including the right to vote 

in free and fair elections and they have done so peacefully since the Nation’s founding; 

Whereas the perpetuation of democracy’s ideals does not happen on its own, and can be stalled or reversed; 

Whereas surveys show that citizens of the United States are 

losing faith in the democratic system; 

Whereas according to a study published in the Journal of Democracy— 

(1) 91 percent of young people in the United States, 

in the 1930s, thought it ‘‘essential’’ to live in a democracy; 

(2) only 30 percent of young people in the United 

States, in 2018, think that it is ‘‘essential’’ to live in a 

democracy; 

(3) 24 percent of young people in the United States, 

in 2018, think democracy is a ‘‘bad’’ or ‘‘very bad’’ way 

of running the country; 


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•HRES 513 IH 

(4) 35 percent think that army rule is a good way 

to run a government; and 

(5) a majority of those under 60 in the United 

States believe it is ‘‘essential’’ to live in a democracy; 

Whereas according to a study published by the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA, twice the percentage 

of college freshmen today (compared to the 1960s, 1970s, 

and 1980s) support banning extreme speakers; 

Whereas according to a University of Pennsylvania Public 

Policy Center poll, nearly one-third of all individuals in 

the United States cannot name a single branch of our 

Government; 

Whereas the International Democracy Index recently labeled 

America as a ‘‘flawed democracy’’, ranked 21st among 

democratic nations; 

Whereas Freedom House concluded ‘‘Democracy as the 

world’s dominant form of government is under greater 

threat than at any point in the last 25 years.’’; 

Whereas President John Adams warned that ‘‘democracy 

never lasts long’’; 

Whereas President George Washington said the United 

States must recognize the immense value of the national 

union and work toward its preservation with ‘‘jealous 

anxiety’’ and wrote that the security of a free Constitution may be accomplished by ‘‘teaching the people themselves to know and to value their own rights’’; 

Whereas President Thomas Jefferson wrote, ‘‘Educate and 

inform the whole mass of the people . . . . They are the 

only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.’’; 


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Whereas the contemporary Oxford professor Stein Ringen observed, ‘‘Democracy is not the default . . . it will disintegrate unless nurtured.’’; 

Whereas former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor said, ‘‘The practice of democracy is not passed down 

through the gene pool. It must be taught and learned 

anew by each generation of citizens.’’; 

Whereas President John F. Kennedy said, ‘‘Democracy is 

never a final achievement. It is a call to effort, to sacrifice, and a willingness to live and die in its defense.’’; 

Whereas President Ronald Reagan said, ‘‘Democracy is worth 

dying for, because it’s the most deeply honorable form of 

government ever devised by man.’’; 

Whereas World War II demonstrated the fragility of democracy and its accompanying civilized life; 

Whereas British Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s observed 

that ‘‘Democracy is the worst form of government, except 

for all the others that have ever been tried.’’; and 

Whereas evidence of the diminution of strong support for 

democratic principles in recent years among citizens of 

the United States suggests the Government of the United 

States must once again teach and educate the people by 

taking appropriate actions to highlight and emphasize the 

importance of democratic principles and their essential 

role in our freedoms and way of life: Now, therefore, be 

it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) recognizes the importance of reminding citi3 zens of the United States of the vital importance of 

4 democracy; 


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•HRES 513 IH 

1 (2) encourages officials of State and local gov2 ernments to also recognize the importance of helping 

3 individuals in the United States understand the vital 

4 importance of democracy; 

5 (3) will strive to help all our citizens under6 stand that democracy is the only form of govern7 ment that has been able to provide freedom with any 

8 regularity; 

9 (4) recognizes that hundreds of thousands of 

10 American men and women in past generations have 

11 sacrificed greatly to preserve the freedoms and prin12 ciples of the United States, including giving their 

13 lives, so that we might enjoy the freedoms that ema14 nate from democracy; and 

15 (5) encourages the people of the United States 

16 to reflect on and appreciate the contributions made 

17 by the democratic system of government created by 

18 the United States Constitution to a more free and 

19 stable world. 

Æ 


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