Should the U.S. insist that Japan change its constitution in order to establish a democracy?
Japan had a written constitution, a “gift” of the Emperor Meiji in 1889. In many respects its wording made it similar to our own Constitution. However, the Japanese Constitution made the emperor, not the people, the sole source of political authority. Thus, the Meiji Constitution was a blend of western political thought and Japanese traditions that had developed over the centuries. The two questions listed below had to be answered by the United States after the surrender of Japan on August 14, 1945. Meeting in small groups, students should discuss, answer, and record at least one reason for their answers. FOLLOW-UP ACTIVITY • Have students meet in the same groups they did earlier for the “Preliminary Activity.” • Ask each group to again answer the two questions from the “Preliminary Activity” and write down at least one reason for each of these decisions, this time referring to the information they got from the reading. • Each group should next compare the answers it wrote in the “Prel
