Thoreau, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., and now Parkland Florida students as well as students around the world; is it true that civil disobedience is the best way for people of all ages to get their voices heard, especially for students who are fighting for gun control?(hook rhetorical) Civil disobedience has been used for centuries to protest unjust laws and legislation, as well as other government decisions that many of the public do not agree with. Thoreau was one of the first to use the term “Resistance to Civil Government” know known as civil disobedience, in which he detailed that not only was the best government the one that did the least, but that laws passed by the government were no better than the people they governed(Thoreau). …show more content…
According to Morris Liebman, author of “Civil Disobedience: A Threat to Our Society Under Law,” “Never in the history of mankind have so many lived so freely, so rightfully, so humanely. This open democratic republic is man’s highest achievement—not only for what it has already accomplished, but more importantly because it affords the greatest opportunity for orderly change and the realization of man’s self-renewing aspirations.” What Liebman fails to realize is that while the United States of America has made improvements, the United States still has a far way to go before it can be considered a fair country. Liebman also states that “The plain fact of human nature is that the organized disobedience of masses stirs up the primitive. This has been true of a soccer crowd and a lynch mob. Psychologically and psychiatrically it is very clear that no man—no matter how well-intentioned—can keep group passions in control.” While disagreeing with the first example from Liebman, it would be difficult to disregard the way that many protests seem to spiral out of control. Peaceful protest for the most part remain peaceful, however some may turn violent very quickly. Liebman also believes that there is no such thing as “righteous civil disobedience” as men and women are deliberately disregarding laws set in place to protect the country, and regards it as deplorable and destructive(Liebman). To combat Liebman, a new age of civil disobedience is rolling in, a more inclusive type. With various social media platforms, word of walkouts and peaceful, with an emphasis on peaceful, protests are spread more quickly. These student led activist groups are popping up more quickly and are not lacking in passion. Many students of today are tired of being told their too young and inexperienced to be taking
In 1848, David Thoreau addressed and lectured civil disobedience to the Concord Lyceum in response to his jail time related to his protest of slavery and the Mexican War. In his lecture, Thoreau expresses in the beginning “That government is best which governs least,” which sets the topic for the rest of the lecture, and is arguably the overall theme of his speech. He chastises American institutions and policies, attempting to expand his views to others. In addition, he advances his views to his audience by way of urgency, analyzing the misdeeds of the government while stressing the time-critical importance of civil disobedience. Thoreau addresses civil disobedience to apprise the people the need for a civil protest to the unjust laws created
Throughout the course of human events, unjust laws have been enacted causing members of society to infringe upon them. In Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 and Sophocles’ Antigone, such acts of civil disobediences are prevalent. In Fahrenheit 451, Guy Montag, a firefighter, lives in a book-banning society where his profession calls for him to start fires to burn books, rather than extinguish any flames. When Montag realizes his unhappiness in his life, he violates numerous laws hoping to transform society from its current state. In Antigone, the protagonist Antigone also breaks an unfavorable law that forbids the burial of her brother Polyneices, an alleged traitor, which ultimately leads to her own demise. Both Montag and Antigone commit powerful
“No radical change on the plane of history is possible without crime,” This quote from Hermann Keyserling is just one of many statements that help describe the meaning and true raw power of Civil Disobedience. Civil disobedience as defined by Merriam Webster is the “refusal to obey governmental demands or commands especially as a nonviolent and usually collective means of forcing concessions from the government”. The most promising and understandable of the definitions of Civil Disobedience would be that given to us by Gandhi from India “Compassion in the form of respectful disagreement”. Even the Veterans Fast for Life from here in the United States must agree when saying, “when leaders act contrary to conscience, we must act contrary to leaders.” To understand why civil disobedience is so important in our lives you must first look into your heart and realize that the integrity of mankind has no need of rules.
Civil disobedience has its roots in one of this country’s most fundamental principles: popular sovereignty. The people hold the power, and those entrusted to govern by the people must wield
According to the American heritage dictionary “Civil Disobedience” is refusal to obey civil laws in an effort to induce change in governmental policy or legislation, characterized by the use of passive resistance or other nonviolent means. In “Civil Disobedience” Thoreau stated “That government is best which governs least, and I would like to see it acted up more rapidly and systematically” (pg227). Thoreau did not believe that the government should have the final say on everything. The citizens of this country should have rights in the decision making process and the opportunity to think for themselves also. Thoreau says that government does not, in fact, achieve that with which we credit it: it does not keep the country free, settle the West, or educate. Rather, these achievements come from the character of the American people, and they would have been even more successful in these endeavors had government been even less involved.
It is important to notice that if civil disobedience was not effective, then it would not be continually used to disobey the law. In "The Role of Civil Disobedience in Democracy” by Kayla Starr, she explains why we have the right to participate in civil disobedience. “The U.S. Bill of Rights asserts that the authority of a government is derived from the consent of the governed, and whenever any form of government becomes destructive, it is the right and duty of the people to alter or abolish it” (Starr 1). There are many examples of how effective this act of defiance could be. During the Boston Tea Party, the citizens of Massachusetts practiced civil disobedience by throwing Britain’s tea into the Boston harbor because they did not want to pay taxes on tea. Now, you can see that the Boston Tea Party played a major role in the United States becoming independent from Britain (Starr 1). Although violating the law has consequences, in this case the reward outweighed the risk. I think that by realizing the power that civil disobedience carries, we can stand up against ...
In our country’s history, Civil Disobedience has had positive effects upon legislation and societal norms. The First Amendment of the United States Constitution states five basic forms of expression that are to be protected by the government: Speech, Press, Assembly, Religion, and Petition. The Founders, in essence, created a means by which the average citizen can achieve political and social change. Justice William J. Brennan Jr. stated in 1989 that, “If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that government cannot prohibit the expression of an idea simply because the society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.”* When citizens speak out or
Despite the belief that fighting with violence is effective, civil disobedience has been tried throughout history and been successful. Fighting violence with violence leaves no oppertunity for peace to work. By refusing to fight back violently, Martin Luther King Jr. took a race of people, taught them the value of their voice, and they earned the right to vote. Henry David Thoreau presented his doctrine that no man should cooperate with laws that are unjust, but, he must be willing to accept the punishment society sets for breaking those laws, and hundreds of years later, people are still inspired by his words. Mohandas K. Gandhi lead an entire country to its freedom, using only his morals and faith to guide him, as well as those who followed him, proving that one man can make a difference. Civil disobedience is the single tool that any person can use to fight for what they want, and they will be heard. After centuries of questioning it, it appears that the pen truly is mightier than the sword.
The use of civil disobedience is a respectable way of protesting a governments rule. When someone believes that they are being forced into following unjust laws they should stand up for what they believe in no matter the consequences because it is not just one individual they are protesting for they are protesting for the well-being of a nation. Thoreau says ?to resist, the government, when its tyranny or its inefficiency are great and unendurable.? People should only let wrong and right be governed by what they believe not the people of the majority. The public should always stand for what is right, stand when they think a government is wrong, and trust in their moral beliefs.
America is like a child who realizes the damages of spilling chocolate milk after the carpet has been stained. The child means no deliberate harm; in fact, he begins to cry and vows to never do it again when the mother informs him of his wrongdoing. But what if the mother kept silent? Would the child have recognized his sin or rather, would he have had discovered a new satisfaction in spilling milk? We, whether consciously or not, are the mothers of America, guarding over any potential harm towards our rights, our liberties, and our voices. In order to defend these intangible treasures we view as our own children, we turn to civil disobedience as a favorable tool. A tool often misinterpreted as a threatening weapon. Too often times is ‘civil
Civil disobedience has long proven a positive force in American society. In the early decades of the United States, Thomas Jefferson understood why the right to rebel is written into the Constitution. When government institutions fail to act, Jefferson believed that protests could force action. Honest rebellions, as Jefferson called them, educate the public and make the concerns of the minority important to the majority. Overall, Jefferson understood that civil disobedience benefits the constitutional system. The Vietnam War protests illustrate how exactly civil disobedience can positively impact on American life.
... lived during times where the government and church held much power in society, but Thoreau’s On the Duty of Civil Disobedience appealed to me the most with his methods of civil disobedience. The government today holds power over the people in the United States. Even though the United States is a democratic government there is still corruption within it. Such as there being corrupt police officers who may lie to save himself knowing that he was wrong. Enabling the persecution of another person who is innocent. Also the rich in this government still hold the most power in this country. A rich person may buy their way out of jail, while a non rich person is not able to. I believe civil disobedience is a great way to combat the government because it prevents bloodshed and allows a message to get across if down with enough people to gain attention.
Civil disobedience to laws is a method of protest that has always been prevalent in free societies and has the power to change the viewpoints of many and bring about change. Peaceful resistance to laws, and whether or not it is a positive or negative method to change, is not black and white or easily determined to be right or wrong. Instead, there are many complications and factors that go into determining the true motives of these movements. However, most of the time, civil disobedience positively impacts societies as it brings issues to the forefront of the media and thusly to the public and aids in battling inequality and fighting for justice.
In physics class, students learn all about Newton’s first law which states that an object at rest will stay at rest while an object in motion will stay in motion unless it is acted upon by a force. So, it shouldn't be a surprise that we the students, believe that civil disobedience is necessary to keep America great. If we the students apply Newton's first law to our world, as the Enlightenment encouraged, we can see that only by applying a force can change occur. Likewise, it is only through civil disobedience and peaceful resistance to laws that can change the course and society and propel social progress for humanity as a whole.
Civil disobedience has reaped positive change on the justice being sown for citizens at a particular time in our history. From Homer Plessy in 1880, to Rosa Parks in 1955 and continuing in 2016 throughout the ‘Right to Rest’ movement of the homeless population in Sacramento, California, American citizens have utilized the act of civil disobedience as the catalyst to create a change that ultimately improved upon their current state of ‘liberty and justice for all’. Our great forefathers crafted the Constitution and supported its ideals with the judicial, legislative and executive branches of our government, securing our continued opportunity to engage in a dialogue that will enable us all to pursue freedom. Civil disobedience permits all citizens to build upon these structures that allow for the pursuit of freedom.