Introduction
Civil disobedience has always been a debated and polar opinionated topic since the first days that it was presented. Whenever it comes to going against a law that is set in stone as something to abide by in a society, some controversial actions are going to follow. The person who played the role as somewhat of a backbone in this movement was Henry Thoreau. In 1849, when Henry Thoreau re-iterated the idea of civil disobedience to the people of American following the Mexican war, it was viewed by some as extremely controversial, some viewed it as treason, and then there were the followers that were completely accepting of it and felt it necessary. This is why, when the idea came of mixing this idea of civil disobedience that was already controversial, with the slavery and whether it should be used against the fugitive slave act, was a real catalyst for uproar and praise. The uproar clearly came from some people with high positions in the United States. Two advocates for the compromise of 1850 and the fugitive slave laws were two candidates for president of the United States, Franklin Pierce from the democratic party and Winfield Scott. Although Franklin Pierce, the eventual winner of the election, wasn't as candid about his beliefs regarding slavery, he was definitely opposed to civil disobedience against the fugitive slave laws. These supporters generally included northern democrats and southern Whigs. The opposition to the compromise of 1850 and the fugitive slave act consisted mainly of abolitionists of slavery at the time. The most powerful and effective users of their rights to civilly disobey usually came from the north mainly because they had the opportunity. The fugitive slave act caused citizens liv...
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...tand up for what they believe in.
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Henry David Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience took the original idea of transcendentalism and put it into action. His civil acts of defiance were revolutionary as he endorsed a form of protest that did not incorporate violence or fear. Thoreau’s initial actions involving the protest of many governmental issues, including slavery, landed him in jail as he refused to pay taxes or to run away. Ironically, more than one hundred years later, the same issue of equal rights was tearing the United States apart. Yet African Americans, like Martin Luther King Jr., followed in Thoreau’s footsteps by partaking in acts of civil disobedience. Sit-ins and peaceful rallies drew attention to the issue while keeping it from escalating into a much more violent problem. Thoreau’s ideas were becoming prevalent as they were used by Civil Rights Activists and the Supreme Court, in such cases as Brown v. Board of Education. The ideology that was created by Thoreau aided the activists and the government in their quest for equality and a more just system of law.
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
Civil Disobedience makes governments more accountable for their actions and has been an important catalyst for overcoming unpopular government policies. To voice his disgust with slavery, in 1849 Henry David Thoreau published his essay, Civil Disobedience, arguing that citizens must not allow their government to override their principles and have a civic duty to prevent their government from using unjust means to ends. The basis for Thoreau’s monumental essay was his refusal to pay a poll tax, which subsequently landed him a night in county jail. In his passage: “If the injustice is part of the necessary friction of the machine of government, let it go, let it go; perchance it will wear smooth—certainly the machine will wear out. If the injustice has a spring, or a pulley, or a rope, or a crank, exclusively for itself, then perhaps you may consider whether the remedy will not be worse than the evil; but if it is of such a nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice to another, then, I say, break the law. Let your life be a counter friction to stop the machine...
Bailey, Thomas Andrew, David M. Kennedy, and Lizabeth Cohen. "Chapter 16." The American Pageant. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1998. N. pag. Print.
Thoreau, Henry D. “Civil Disobedience.” Walden, Civil Disobedience and Other Writings. New York: W.W Norton and Company, 2008. Print.
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In 1849, transcendentalist philosopher and writer, Henry David Thoreau, wrote a treatise originally entitled “Resistance to Civil Government.” This piece is however, now more commonly known as “Civil Disobedience.” Thoreau was staunchly opposed to the two major issues that were prominent in his lifetime: slavery and the Mexican-American War. These issues shaped his political views and led him to write “Civil Disobedience” (SparkNotes Editors).
Bailey Thomas A., Kennedy David M, The American Pageant: A History of the Republic 10th ed , Lexington, Massachusetts, D.C. Heath and Company,1994.
Sometimes civil disobedience can become violent as in the case in South Africa during the struggle to end apartied. It started out with passive resistance, but after years of struggling with no change, a violent group was formed and was willing to do anything to get the freedom they desired.
Bailey, Thomas A., David M Kennedy, and Lizabeth Cohen. The American Pageant: A History of the American People. Boston, MA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2010. Print.
Recently on a trip to St. Louis, my family and I drove through the town of Ferguson, Missouri. This city was the site of several violent protests over the alleged unequal treatment of black Americans by the Ferguson police force. A year after the events had ended, the destruction in the area was still evident with several boarded up storefronts and business. These types of protests are seen fairly regularly on the nightly news due to social injustice concerns from one side or the other. Violent protests are seemingly out of the question for most Christians, however, at what point does civil disobedience become an appropriate course of action for a Christian?
Henry David Thoreau, “Civil Disobedience,” in Walden and Other Writings (United States of America: Barnes and Noble, 1993) 279.
Throughout history, changes and movements have come in many different and unexpected forms. One form of change, disobedience, has continued to dominate the others in terms of effectiveness. Some of the greatest alterations made to the world have stemmed from some form of disobedience, such as the founding of the protestant church under Martin Luther and English Reformation. Often, the disobedience resulted from conflicting religious beliefs and interpretations of religious works. The history and formation of the United States of American provide an example of how disobedience shapes a nation. Disobedience of unjust laws, based on divine authority, laid the foundation of the American identity.
Thoreau, Henry David. "Civil Disobedience" A World of Ideas. Ed. Lee A. Jacobus. Bedford/St. Martin's, 2002. 301-324. Print.
----- "Civil Disobedience" from A World of Ideas - Essential Readings for College Readers, Lee A. Jacobus, Bedford Books, 1998, 1849(123 -146)