How difficult is it to amend the constitution? (15 marks)

A constitution is a set of rules, which outlines the powers and structure of government and  defines the relatinship between the branches of government, as well as, the people and government.The founding fathers created the constitution to protect the people and ensure a tyrannical government can not be formed. With this in mind, they constructed a very rigid document needing 2/3 majority in both Houses, making it very difficult to amend.Therefore, attempting to change the constitution has become a long and tideous process, taking some state legislatures up to 7years to decide, resulting in the amendment being delayed for alomst 10years. This has caused some amendments, which are needed to protect the minorities, to fail due to lack of support, undermining the concept of democracy as it marginalises minorities. For example the Equal Rights for Women Amendment was proposed in 1972 but was rejected due to lack of support. Thus, proving amending the constitution is very difficult.

Futhermore, some amendments are out of date and void in today's society but because of the lengthy and challenging process it is very difficult to change the constitution to suit the modern time. For example, the 2nd Amendment "right to bear arms" is not applicable to today's society as there is no longer a need for personal possession of guns in a civilised society, but has been unable…