In le seculo XVIII, le colonistas american in lo
que nunc es le Statos Unite, cognoscente multo ben
iste philosophia de Locke, protestava nove impostos
imponite sur illes per le rege anglese Georgio III.
Quando le governamento britannic refusava lor
petitiones pro relevamento, illes invocava lor derecto
a opponer le politicas del soveran britannic e
comenciava le revolution american.

Post le Articulos de Confederation, que establiva
un governamento federal multo debile, le americanos,
post un serie de compromissos, arrivava a un
constitution que establiva nostre presidente como
le regente executive, limitate per nostre congresso
e nostre cortes federal.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, le philosopho e theorista
politic francese, qui credeva fortemente in le
soverania popular, observava un vice que le angleses
esseva libere solmente durante le dies de lor
electiones.  Un vice elegite, lor representantes
poteva facer lo que illes voleva usque le proxime
election.

Ma Locke e le homines qui scribeva le constitution
statounitese esseva multo sceptic sur le competentia
de multe personas a consentir seriemente al politicas
de un governamento.  Alicunes, exemplo, es troppo
juvene.  In le Statos Unite on ha decidite que omne
persona assatis vetule pro esser un soldato--dece-octo
annos de etate secundo nostre leges currente--debe
haber le derecto de votar.

Ma in le prime dies del republica american, solmente
homines (e homines principalmente de origine europee)
con un certe quantitate de benes economic esseva
eligible a votar.  Post le Prime Guerra mundial
recipeva feminas american le derecto a votar.

Post nostre guerra civil in le seculo XIX comenciava
cader le base legal que prohibeva le voto a nostre
citatanos afroamerican.  Ma cadeva omne le
restrictiones legal solmente in le decada inter
1960 e 1970.  E etiam nunc, in Florida durante nostre
election federal que dava le Casa Blanc a George
W. Bush, multe afroamericanos esseva illegalmente
excludite del voto.

---

In the Eighteenth Century, American colonists in
what is now the United States, having an excellent
understanding of this philosophy of Locke, protested
against new taxes imposed on them by the English
king George III.  When the British government refused
their petitions for relief, they invoked their right
to oppose the policies of the British soveriegn and
started the American Revolution.

After the Articles of Confederation, which established
a very weak federal government, the Americans, after
a series of compromises, arrived at a constitution
that established our president as the executive
governor, limited by our congress and our federal
courts.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the French philosopher and
political theorist, who believed strongly in popular
sovereignty, observed once that the English were
free only during the days of their elections.  Once
elected, their representatives could do whatever
they wanted until the next election.

But Locke and the men who wrote the U.S. constitution
were very skeptical about the competence of many
people to consent seriously to the policies of a
government.  Some, for example, are too young.
In the United States it was finally decided that
everyone old enough to be a soldier--eighteen years
of age according to our current laws--should have
the right to vote.

But in the first days of the American republic,
only men (and men primarily of European origin)
with a certain quantity of economic property were
eligible to vote.  After the First World War American
women received the right to vote.

After our Civil War in the Nineteenth Century the
legal base denying the vote to our African American
citizens began to fall.  But all legal restrictions
fell only in the decade of the 1960s.  And even
now, in Florida during our federal election that
put George W. Bush in the White House, many Americans
of African origin were illegally excluded from the
vote.

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