Fight for Freedom

Throughout the duration of human existence there have been defining moments in our history where the resistance and zealous disobedience of an oppressed populace has led to a transformed society. Slavery, oppression, and the forced subjugation of minorities have been shrouded truths for our minuscule history. The precedent fact that an ethnocentric elite always manages to oppress the belittled majority is a truth not easily ignored. King argues that the virtue of freedom is not “voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.” Citizens are obligated to fight for their fundamental rights; Widener’s “Tank Man,” Thoreau’s “On the Duty of Civil Disobedience,” and the Arab Spring validate King’s claim that freedom is a virtue that can only be acquired through resistance and insubordination.

Jeff Widener’s photograph, “Tank Man,” depicts the strength of an individual and the ability for a single courageous act to propel an already anxious populace into a revolution. Widener accentuates the individual behind the resistance of a tyrannical government. The “Tank Man” and his ability in halting the progress of a larger than life entity incites the belief that average men are capable of igniting revolutions. Widener’s illustration explains that one man’s choice of civil disobedience leads to the revolution that became the Tiananmen Square Massacre, the fight for freedom from an autocratic government. The image of an average man, peacefully halting the progress of his oppressive government, depicts King’s argument that the oppressed must demand their freedom. It was the “Tank Man’s” simple and placid, yet powerful, act of defiance that inspired the uprise of the whole country. One man’s desire for freedom created a r...

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...emocratic institutions,” the long awaited freedom of the Middle East is the direct effect of the people’s demand for freedom and liberty (Myre, NPR).

In an oppressive government, the only way to obtain freedom is by demanding it. An tyrannical government keeps its power through fear and repression of basic rights, such as freedom. Only through the confrontation of the autocratic governments can freedom be offered to the population. The above mentioned illustrate that the fight for individual rights and liberty is the motivation that fuels citizens into following the path of civil disobedience. Righteous anger is the fuel under the movement of a resistance, and the anger of an oppressed population can cause the revolution of a century.

Works Cited

Myre, Greg. "The Hopeful Arab Spring Turns Into A Roiling Arab Summer." NPR. NPR, 3 July 2013.

Web. 17 Dec. 2013.