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Comment on civil disobedience
Comment on civil disobedience
Civil disobedience in the us civil rights movement
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I believe peaceful resistance to laws is what defines a true democracy. It allows the people to exercise their in masses - which what the purpose of democracy is, it's purpose is to give power to the people. So my stance on peaceful resistance is that it positively impacts a free society. The most common form of peaceful resistance is civil disobedience. The most famous act of civil disobedience in American history is seen in the Civil Rights Movement with MLK Jr. at the forefront. The civil rights movements sought inspiration from another famous act of peaceful resistance against the government, this movement was Indian independence movement(1). In this movement in a completely different society, the Indians practiced peaceful resistance
Mahatma Gandhi, a prominent leader in the independence movement of India once said, “Civil disobedience becomes a sacred duty when the state becomes lawless and corrupt.”(brainyquotes.com) Gandhi states that protest and civil disobedience are necessary when the authority becomes unscrupulous. This correlates to “Declaration of Independence,” by Thomas Jefferson; “Civil Disobedience,” by Henry David Thoreau; and “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” by Martin Luther King Jr., because all three leaders felt that civil disobedience was important to help protest against an unjust ruling. Jefferson stood up to the injustice of the king by writing the Declaration of Independence and urged others to stand up for the independence of America. Thoreau exemplified
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is a prime example of this act of disobedience, and said, “The end justifies the means, even though the means are regrettable.” He however did not question the legitimacy of the American government but rather the particular laws that he and others felt were unjust. The civil rights movement was started by Dr. King, in which he found that it would be against
The most famous instances of famous civil disobedience were all non-violent. Many famous civil rights activist preach non-violence, but there have been a lot of instances of violent civil disobedience. In 2014 the Boko Haram organization kidnaped 329 Nigerian girls from the Government Secondary School in Chibok. The boko Haram disliked western style education. So they kidnaped all these girls to protest. They ended up forcing girls into marriage. There is always an act of disobedience going on. This is similar to what happened to Korematsu. He was forced to stay in a military base, because of his
Over the centuries, some leaders have believed that private citizens should rebel against injustice in a non-violent rebellion. These leaders have had courage and passion to start or encourage revelations; they have committed acts of civil disobedience to protest these laws put up by a corrupt government. The leaders were willing to give up their lives or freedom because their conscience would not let them rest and accept the unjust laws. Some of these leaders include Henry David Thoreau, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Aung San Suu Kyi, and Malala Yousafzai. To illustrate, a famous man of literature and a leader of civil disobedience acts is Henry David Thoreau.
Comparing the Civil Disobedience of Martin Luther King Jr., Henry David Thoreau, and Mohandas Gandhi. From the onset of man fighting for freedom or his beliefs, the question has always been whether one person can make a difference using words rather than wars. Philosophically, the concept of civil disobedience would appear to be an ineffective weapon against political injustice; history however has proven it to repeatedly be one of the most powerful weapons of the common man. Martin Luther King Jr. looked at the way African Americans were treated in the United States and saw an increase in inequality.
Peaceful resistance itself does not affect a free society. A people-group can protest any number of laws: voting rights, taxes, and the legality of murder. A majority of society must determine what is best for itself. If the principles of a resistance aligns with the ideals of the society, the pursuit of betterment positively impacts that
Peaceful resistance to laws positively impact a free society because if there isn't, how will people hear the voices of the oppressed and mistreated? Peaceful resistance comes a long way in trying to advance the rights and customs of the oppressed today. For example, The Salt March of 1930 was based on the Salt Act of 1882, which excluded the people the India from producing or getting salt, only British officials. Mahatma Gandhi was the leader of this protest. According to an article by time.com, it says that "The protest continued until Gandhi was granted bargaining rights at a negotiation in London. India didn’t see freedom until 1947, but the salt satyagraha (his brand of civil disobedience) established Gandhi as a force to be reckoned with and set a powerful precedent for future nonviolent protestors, including Martin Luther King Jr.(Sarah Begley,2015)" This means the salt march was a start for India's independence. Also, Gandhi's brand of civil disobedience set precedents for future nonviolent protests. Another Example of how peaceful protests
According to Oscar Wilde, disobedience is a valuable human trait that promotes social progress. Civil disobedience allows for the unification of various groups to fight towards a common goal, often resulting in change. Historically, there has been much evidence supporting Wilde’s claim. Significant examples of disobedience that led to social progress include the Boston Tea Party, the Salt March, and the Civil Rights Movement.
Throughout history, there have been multiple occurrences of mass peaceful and civil disobedience that gained momentum and world renown. The successful movement against imperialist Britain led by Gandhi shook the world. The Gandhi-inspired Civil Rights movement led by Martin Luther King successful in reforming an aspect of American law. These movements, caused turmoil and ended with assassinations despite successfully achieving the movement goals. Peaceful resistance consequently causes negative impacts such as violence, social splits, incarceration, riots, and the abuse of peaceful resistance, although on rare occasions, a civil disobedience movement may be completely justified and grandly successful.
Peaceful resistance to United States laws is a positive thing most of the time, but it can also very well have a negative impact. It is not right to condone or promote illegal activities, even if the people who commit the crime are willing to face the consequences. Protesting is a tremendous way for people to voice their opinion publicly in our free country. Although, disturbing the peace or taking violent actions can snowball from peaceful protesting. A lot of negative things have happened to people trying to people trying to voice their opinion.
Peaceful resistance is an important part of our free society. It positively impacts and helps shape a more equal and just future for all citizens in the society. Yes, problems still occur even with peaceful resistance and demonstration, but in its simplest form peaceful resistance is a necesity for a free society. Overall, the point is made that change is needed, but no one gets hurt in the process and that is what makes it important.
A common example of civil disobedience was in 1955, when Rosa Parks refused to give up her bus seat in Montgomery, Alabama (“Rosa Parks”). Parks
Peaceful resistance, or nonviolent resistance, is a civil disobedience over an uncertain situation a group of people thinks it's unjust, and by using symbolic protesting, they protest without the use of violence. With the used of peaceful resistance, there could be changes made to our free society. Since the community is considered free, it would be difficult to have agreements to be made.
Have you ever wondered what it was like to make a difference and even change something in your country? How would you feel if you were considered a hero by your people? Civil disobedience is a form of protest that uses a law to show that it is not needed. The protestors intentionally violate a law that they are protesting against (Suber). For example, Rosa Parks used civil disobedience by sitting at the front of the bus because she believed that all people are the same and deserved equal rights. Although civil disobedience uses tactics of nonviolence, it is more than a little passive resistance because it is used to take action by illegal street demonstrations or by peaceful occupations (Starr). Mandela’s involvement in civil disobedience was due to his strongly hatred of racism and racial prejudice in South Africa. Mr. Mandela did achieve success by using guerrilla tactics as well as civil disobedience to stand up to what he believed was right.
A fundamental aspect of the US Constitution is the right of “Free Speech”. Although all Americans have this right, it does not allow for civil disobedience or violating the law, thus violating another person’s rights. So in the question posed, if peaceful resistance is interpreted as peaceful protest then this is in line with our Constitution and can have a positive impact on a free society. If peaceful resistance is interpreted as a “right” to riot, violate the law, destroy property or similar acts, then this can have a negative impact on a free society. This is a topic that is quite relevant today. Although there are many to choose from, I will compare a few recent examples.