Throughout the history of the world, oppression has existed side-by-side with humanity. It is engrained into culture and has become inseparable to human nature, just as war has. Like war, humanity struggles against it and longs for transcending unity among all. The fight against oppression is found in every classroom, workplace, nation, race, etc. Many individuals have risen from the masses advocating in favor of peace for all. They stand for those who cannot stand for themselves and as result are responsible for the improvement of millions of life. It is in their selfless service that positive change occurs. On the other hand, individuals have risen from all classes sponsoring hate and tyranny. They stand on those who cannot fight for themselves and are only concerned with the benefit of themselves or the ruling class. Such men and women prey on the fear and naiveté of their citizens. As a result, nations are crippled and its citizens are left with bleeding wounds. An extreme like this is wholly to be blamed on the same citizens for not concerning themselves when there were still opportunities for change. It is a citizen’s responsibility to actively participate in its government just as it is a government’s responsibility to listen to its citizens. Citizens become oppressed when they allow themselves to disconnect from the political process and do not respond to their government’s actions.
When citizens are disengaged from the governments they give power to, governments slowly begin to rule over them rather than existing solely to serve. In his article commenting on “Check Your Privilege 101” by the Transformative Justice Law Project of Illinois (TJLP), David Judd explains what is wrong in the current language against oppressio...
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... responsibility the direction their society takes. In order to maintain a free people, it is up to one to pay careful attention at the actions of their representatives and to stand up against every injustice.
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DPRK Const. art. 30, 31, 34, and 41
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Historically, the United States has prided itself as the most egalitarian and autonomous nation in the world. Political figures and institutions have attempted to uphold the theoretical ideals of the nation, while in practice often fail to fulfill their promises to the people. This gap between our fundamental values as delineated in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution and our discriminatory practices such as slavery and gender discrimination can be found in competing political ideologies which purposefully exclude marginalized peoples. The framers built the United States for the white man; every other person’s rights came, and continue to come afterwards. Once one people’s freedom is postponed, the same oppressive strategies
Taylor, Keeanga-Yamahtta. "Civil Rights and Civil Wrongs: Racism in America Today."International Socialist Review Online November-December.32 (2003): n. pag.ISReview.org. International Socialist Organization. Web. 07 Dec. 2013. .
In a reality where the government strives to establish total equality, there are bound to be an immense amount of rebels and protesters who questions the newly established system. It is expected for the mass majority of individuals to be demeaning the so-called “equality” and demanding for change. However, this interpretation is far from the case in the fictional text “Harrison Bergeron”, where there appears to be daily brainwashing of the population, as well as law enforcement through putting bullets through people’s heads. The allegory attempts to depict a world where the government’s primary focus is to ensure that each and every individual is absolutely equivalent to one another. Taking place in 2081 America, there are several
...he “oppressed” will act toward freedom and reintegration into society and will eventually succeed in gaining back their freedom, but it will not be easy. To make steps in the right direction and to determine the right choice, one must take into account the impact silence or non-silence makes on the system as a whole; the better choice does not add to the mass incarceration.
“Civil Disobedience,” written by Henry David Thoreau – originally published as “Resistance to Civil Government” in Aesthetic Papers (1849) and motivated by slavery and the Mexican-American War – discusses the hold government has on individuals in a society and the potential risks, as well as solutions, to overcoming the majority consciousness. Thoreau opens his essay with words he believes every government should live by: “That government is best which governs least.” Thoreau expresses that traditional government is often an inhibitor to the fluidity of justice and the desires of the majority, as well as the minority. As detailed, the American people have established a desire for some complicated concept to derive their government in order
...2009): 8-9. United Nations Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review. Web. 8 Apr. 2014. .
Correspondingly, the oppressed are kept oppressed for beneficial reasons to sustain power. Gonzalez’s experience is not atypical, many undocumented individuals are detained and deported in public places in order to send a negative message to people of color. The oppressors’ goal is to cause more fear for the marginalized communities and silence them from challenging and fighting against the inequities and dehumanization of people of color. Likewise, the oppressors exploit people of color for profit. For instance, “money is the measure of all things, and profit the primary goal” (Freire, 58). In other words, throughout history the oppressors exert power over the marginalized to profit off of them. Similarly to Gonzalez’s case, where her arrested
Throughout history there have been countless cases where groups of people have fought for their freedom. They have fought their battles in political debates, protests, and in the most extreme cases war. The oppressed continuously try to escape their oppressors, under the assumption that their oppressors live in complete sovereignty. People did not know then and still do not understand today that the environment they inhabit is the key factor that controls communal freedom. In Wallace Stevens “Disillusionment of Ten O’ Clock” and Walt Whitman’s “Song of Myself” both speakers affirm that society does not allow individual freedom to exist in this world.
Fear of Difference is a unique a weapon of unimaginable power. Throughout history this weapon has been used in certain situations to force conformity upon the oppressed to enslave people against their will. By exploiting the Fear of Difference, a leader or oppressor can enter the minds of the oppressed and override their basic beliefs and goals in life with their own views, and when it is used properly, the results can range from the acceptance of basic racial discrimination to the cruel and undue deaths of millions. When Fear of Difference is exploited, those who are being oppressed lose sight of their own views an opinions and are forced to conform ideals imposed upon them.
Markovits, Daniel. "Democratic disobedience." Yale Law Journal June 2005: 1897+. Criminal Justice Collection. Web. 29 Apr. 2014.
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This oppression and discrimination is experienced through several forms of oppression including violence, racism classism and sexism not only at a personal level but also at the structural level. This high risk population is vulnerable for internalizing the oppression as an accepted norm. Mullaly believes that “people may be given certain rights but still be unable to exercise their rights due to particular social constraints based on class, gender, race and ethnicity.”
...wing its mandates. These same oppressions are still happening today. People in America, as well as other countries around the world, still face unjust treatment from their governments. An example can be seen with the Taliban banning Pakistani girls from attending school. In protest to this, Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani girl, refused to follow these rules, and even began a blog for the British Broadcasting Corporation, detailing her life under Taliban rule. In response to her protest, a gunman approached her, and shot her three times. This assassination attempt started a global movement in support of Yousafzai and her beliefs. Like Thoreau, Gandhi, King, and Yousafzai, one must realize when others are being oppressed and take action against those in power who oppress the people they rule. Otherwise, there will never be change, and the world will never see justice.
“Oppression, to divide and conquer is your goal. Oppression, I swear hatred is your home. Oppression, you mean only harm.” -Ben Harper
----- "Civil Disobedience" from A World of Ideas - Essential Readings for College Readers, Lee A. Jacobus, Bedford Books, 1998, 1849(123 -146)