Individual Rights

Individual rights are not subject to a public vote; a majority has no right to vote away the rights of a minority; the political function of rights is precisely to protect minorities from oppression by majorities (and the smallest minority on earth is the individual). - Ayn Rand

The founders of this country knew this - the majority could be wrong. The Constitution (as it was written) limited the majority but the amendments and interpretations soon morphed it into what it is today.