Civil Disobedience: Protest Beyond The Law

Not only does peaceful resistance positively affect a free society, it is the bedrock for its survival. When the Founding Fathers congregated to ratify the Bill of Rights, they considered those ten as unalienable because they were representative of the American people’s values. As questions about which rights are guaranteed constantly circulate, civil disobedience can be a critical reminder to lawmakers about which rights the public refuse to forfeit. In a country of such rich diversity, unanimous agreement is a profound rarity. Unrepresented citizens cannot always rely on their peers to represent the same values, and as the late Howard Zinn once stated: “Protest beyond the law is not a departure from the law; it is essential to it.” Civil disobedience grants a voice to the otherwise voiceless. Ideological minorities can voice their discontent by refusing to conform to policies that breach their moral compasses. Without civil disobedience, those unfavored ideologies would struggle to compete in the marketplace of ideas.

Their candidates may have lost, but they are no less a part of the American populous. Their opinions matter just as much as any other’s do. People’s civic duties do not end when they leave the booth on election day. In fact, their responsibility only grows to hold public officials to the standards they are expected to meet. If civil disobedience is not encouraged, it strips the people of their influence in the gaps between election