ConstitutionDAO (PEOPLE)

Governance and Ownership

ConstitutionDAO was created as a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) to collectively bid on a rare copy of the U.S. Constitution. The $PEOPLE token served as a governance token, allowing holders to vote on decisions related to the Constitution's placement and management if the bid had succeeded. It represented a way for the community to have a say in the ownership and stewardship of a rare historical asset.

Fundraising and Crowdfunding

The primary use case of ConstitutionDAO was to facilitate crowdfunding through Ethereum, enabling thousands of contributors to pool funds quickly and transparently for a shared goal. This demonstrated a new model of raising money online using blockchain technology.

Community and Ecosystem

After the auction, although the bid was unsuccessful, the $PEOPLE token continued to exist as a symbol of the community and its experiment in decentralized governance. Some community members have considered using the tokens for future projects or governance within related ecosystems, but ConstitutionDAO itself does not endorse any specific plans.

Historical and Cultural Preservation

The project highlighted a novel use case for crypto tokens in cultural preservation, aiming to put a rare historical document "in the hands of the people" through decentralized ownership and decision-making.

Summary

• $PEOPLE tokens were governance tokens for voting on the Constitution's fate.
• ConstitutionDAO enabled collective crowdfunding via Ethereum.
• The token now serves as a community symbol with potential future uses.
• The project showcased crypto's role in cultural and historical asset ownership.

Pros

• ConstitutionDAO raised a large amount of funds quickly, showing the power of community crowdfunding with over $47 million raised from nearly 17,500 contributors.
• It was a unique experiment in decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), demonstrating how people can come together using blockchain technology to pursue a shared goal.
• The project educated many people about web3 and blockchain, onboarding thousands into the crypto space.
• Contributors could participate with any amount they felt comfortable with, making it accessible.
• The $PEOPLE token served as proof of donation and governance within the DAO during its active phase.
• After the project ended, tokens could be redeemed for Ethereum at the original contribution ratio, allowing contributors to recover their funds minus gas fees.
• Some community members continue to use the $PEOPLE token for new projects, showing ongoing community interest.

Cons

• The DAO ultimately lost the auction to buy the Constitution, so the main goal was not achieved.
• The tokens no longer have any rights, governance, or utility beyond redeeming for Ethereum.
• Refunds were delayed and complicated by Ethereum transaction fees, which sometimes were high compared to the donation amounts.
• The project was short-lived and dissolved after the auction loss, limiting long-term impact.
• The legal and logistical setup was complex, involving multi-signature wallets and partnerships to place the bid.
• Some speculators bought tokens after the project ended, which caused confusion and issues within the community.
• The DAO lacked a central authority, which made decision-making and governance more challenging.

Founders and Core Team

ConstitutionDAO was founded in November 2021 by a group of crypto enthusiasts and history fans who connected through social media platforms like Reddit, Twitter, and Discord. The founding team included Jonah Erlich, Graham Novak, Will Papper, and several other core contributors who helped organize the community effort.

Formation and Motivation

The group came together quickly with the goal of raising funds to bid on a rare original copy of the U.S. Constitution at a Sotheby's auction. They wanted to show the power of decentralized collective action using cryptocurrency.

Community and Organization

The founders emphasized community governance and collective decision-making as core principles. The organization operated as a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), meaning it was run by rules encoded in smart contracts and decisions were made by token holders.

In summary, ConstitutionDAO was started by a team of internet users and crypto enthusiasts led by Jonah Erlich, Graham Novak, and Will Papper, among others, who organized a large online community to crowdfund the purchase of a historic document.

Investors in ConstitutionDAO

ConstitutionDAO was made up of thousands of crypto investors and enthusiasts from around the world who contributed Ether (ETH) to raise about $47 million. These investors were mostly individuals who joined through social media platforms like Twitter and Discord. They pooled their funds to try to buy a rare original copy of the U.S. Constitution at a Sotheby’s auction.

Token Holders

Investors received PEOPLE tokens in exchange for their contributions. Each token represented voting rights within the DAO, allowing holders to have a say in decisions such as where the Constitution would be displayed if the bid had succeeded. The median donation was about $206, and over 17,000 donors participated.

Organizers and Core Members

The project was initiated by a small group of core members including Graham Novak and Austin Cain, who helped organize the fundraising and coordinate the DAO’s activities. Other participants included crypto investors and enthusiasts, such as Anisha Sunkerneni, who joined to help build the community and manage roles like marketing and PR.

Summary

• Thousands of individual crypto investors contributed Ether.
• Over 17,000 donors participated with a median donation of $206.
• Contributors received PEOPLE tokens granting governance rights.
• Core organizers included founders like Graham Novak and Austin Cain.
• The group coordinated mainly through social media and Discord.

Halal Status of ConstitutionDAO

• Nature of ConstitutionDAO: ConstitutionDAO was a decentralized autonomous organization formed to collectively bid on a rare copy of the U.S. Constitution. It issued PEOPLE tokens that gave holders governance rights but did not confer ownership of a physical asset.

• Halal Considerations: Halal cryptocurrencies must comply with Islamic finance principles, avoiding interest (riba), gambling (maysir), and excessive uncertainty (gharar). They should ideally be asset-backed or have a clear real-world purpose.

• Assessment: ConstitutionDAO’s token (PEOPLE) is a governance token without direct asset backing or profit-sharing. Its purpose was to collectively bid on a historic document, but the DAO did not own the asset, and the token’s value is subject to market speculation.

• Conclusion: No explicit information confirms ConstitutionDAO as halal. Given the speculative nature and lack of clear asset backing or profit-sharing aligned with Shariah principles, ConstitutionDAO would generally not be classified as halal.

Answer: No, ConstitutionDAO is not considered halal because it lacks clear asset backing and involves speculative governance tokens.