Presenter: Ms. L. Turbett Slides Made By: Daniel Fraser

 According to the Merriam- Webster dictionary, democracy is essentially “a form of government in which people choose leaders by voting”  Idea of democracy began in ancient Greece  It was also used by Iroquois people

 Citizens met in public places, to talk about issues and reach decisions  Citizens were only male, not female or slaves (usage of slaves = not a true democracy)  These Greeks named this system democracy  Democracy meant “ ruled by the people, for the people”

 Existed before Europeans came to North America  League of Iroquois was made at the end of the 1500s, to end fighting between different tribes  League made by Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, and Seneca people  Tuscaora people joined later  League members were allies ( politically, military) but managed their own society

 League governed by council of 50 members (Sachmes)  Each nation had 8-14 representatives  When a Sachem died, the oldest woman in the clan choose the successor  Positions of the council were handed down

 Each fall, the council members met in Onondaga  Issues were presented, discussed, and decided on before going on to the next one  Council tried to make the decisions unanimous  If a unanimous decision could not be met, each nation was free to do what it wanted instead

 Every nation had chiefs who would rule for life  Chiefs were elected, and family members elected them  These chiefs were the governors for their nation  They were treated more like helpers, rather than people who had power  If people disliked the chiefs actions, they could remove him from that position

 There are two types of democracy  Direct and Representative democracy

 Every person votes on an issue  May occur in small communities were people debate and decided on issues  Also may occur in unions, where members must express their opinions and vote on problems  May happen on a large scale (country, province) by having a referendum  For example, Scotland's people recently voted in a referendum to stay within the UK rather than becoming an independent country

 People elect a person to represent their views  This is part of Canada’s government system, it is a very common form throughout the world  It is an efficent system since it would take to long for every one to make a decision for every issue

 People vote for a person to represent them (usually part of a political party)  They meet in Ottawa to debate issues, create polices, and make laws for us  These people are called politicians and this is their full time job

 Canada’s government is a constitutional monarchy( king or queen)  Under Canada’s constitution, our monarch has little power  The monarch is a figure head while we actually practice a representative democracy  Our Prime Minister of Canada is Stephen Harper  Currently in other countries(Saudi Arabia, Qatar) and throughout history, the monarch was the only person making the decisions