Topic One: Federalists v. Anti-Federalists Debate: After the Constitutional Convention of 1787 had ended and the proposed U.S. Constitution had been submitted to the American people for ratification, public debates raged between those who supported the U.S. Constitution (the Federalists) and those who opposed it (the Anti-Federalists). One of the central issues in the debates was whether it would be possible to unite the 13 states into one great nation, under one federal government, in such a way that the individual states and their respective governments would not be eliminated – and with them, the means of securing the liberties of the citizens of America. After reviewing the readings on this topic in the Week 1 Learning Activities folder, consider the following:
- Why did the Founders gather to replace the Articles of Confederation with the new U.S. Constitution?
- What did each group believe influenced the U.S. Constitution?
- Which group promoted federalism as a system of government and why?
- Which group promoted individual civil liberties and why?
- Which viewpoint is more important as it affects our lives today?