While in the past peaceful protests and civil disobedience may have been effective, in today’s society it is a much different story. The central reason civil disobedience was so impactful in the United States was the persistence of the protesters, and their determination that they would not be defeated until they achieved the rights they demanded. Conversely, many acts of civil disobedience do not have this quality, and thus creates more division in the nation. This belief is best summarized in a quote by President Woodrow Wilson; he goes on to say: “A nation which does not remember what it was yesterday, does not know what it is today, nor what it is trying to do.” (Leibman, 1964). The idea of a nation not knowing what it is trying to do is …show more content…
At its core, civil disobedience is breaking laws to prove the point a law is unjust in one way or another. However, in the American system of government, there are many different ways to peacefully and respectfully change the law. “I cannot accept the right to disobey where, as here, the law is not static and where, if it is claimed to be oppressive or coercive, many effective channels for change are constantly available.” (Leibman, 1964). The quote reinforces the point of having the opportunity for other methods of change whether it is through the court system or the law making process. There are many different methods that are much more direct and effective for a law to change, but the acts of civil disobedience are not effective in enacting changes to the laws …show more content…
This comes in the lack of leverage one has when participating in civil disobedience because one has broken the law, to show that a law, rule or policy is unjust. In the eyes of the law, the person who has broken the law is still at fault for the actions they have taken. In the article about the negatives of civil disobedience, the author exemplifies the idea of having an unjust law and acting upon it rather than having unlawful behavior for a valid law. The article goes on to say, “the distinction remains between “breaking” a “law” that is invalid under the Constitution, which involves no unlawful behavior, and breaking a valid law because it is claimed to be unjust, which of course involves unlawful behavior - even if the claim of injustice is sound and even if it is recognized as sound by a subsequent amendment of the law.” (McNally, 1969). Someone who wishes for change to occur in the society they live must justify their action in one way or another, but the method of civil disobedience makes it tough for one’s actions to be justified after taking part in breaking the law. The actions taken then can be questioned due to the subject breaking the law in the form of a protest. Civil disobedience helps create more division by causing disrespect for the law by breaking laws to prove their point. This occurs when the goals of the disobedient acts aim
Civil Disobedience, as stated in the prompt, is the act of opposing a law one considers unjust and peacefully disobeying it while accepting the consequences. Many people believe this has a negative impact on the free society because they believe civil disobedience can be dangerous or harmful. Civil disobedience does not negatively affect the free society in a dangerous manner because it is peaceful and once it becomes harmful to the free society then it is not civil disobedience. Thoreau believed civil disobedience is an effective way of changing laws that are unjust or changing things that as a society and to the people does not seem correct. This peaceful act of resistance positively impacts a free society. Some examples are Muhammad Ali peacefully denying the draft and getting arrested. These men believed that what they saw was wrong and they did something about it but they did it peacefully.
Civil Disobedience occurs when an individual or group of people are in violation of the law rather than a refusal of the system as a whole. There is evidence of civil disobedience dating back to the era after Jesus was born. Jesus followers broke the laws that went against their faith. An example of this is in Acts 4:19-20,”God told the church to preach the gospel, so they defied orders to keep quiet about Jesus,” In my opinion civil disobedience will always be needed in the world. The ability to identify with yourself and knowing right from wrong helps to explain my opinion. Often in society when civil
No one possesses the same morals or beliefs. Morality does not have a black and white answer because no one is exactly alike. Everyone has their own opinion and right to voice that opinion, and there are numerous ways of doing so. As a citizen with my own beliefs, I believe I have the right to violate laws if I feel morally obligated to. The amount of progress that America has made in such a short amount of time is astonishing. In some ways it seems as if the only way to make any headway is to speak up. If I was morally opposed to a policy or law I would go against it due to its effectiveness, individualism, and past history of the world that has made immense progress.
In the Theory of Justice by John Rawls, he defines civil disobedience,” I shall begin by defining civil disobedience as a public, nonviolent, conscientious yet political act contrary to law usually done with the aim of bringing about a change in the law or policies of the government”.
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
Henry David Thoreau, a philosopher and creative artist as well as an anti slavery activist, wrote his short story “From Resistance to Civil Disobedience”. In this story he’s arrested for not paying his state taxes. At the time the state was engaged in the Mexican-American War that was not only fought over boundaries expanding slavery but was also enacted by President Polk under his own decision. Thoreau thought the war was too aggressive and without just reason.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. received a Nobel Prize and was honored by the President of the United States for his contributions to society. On the other hand, he was prosecuted, convicted, incarcerated, and had his sentence reaffirmed by the Supreme Court. These explanations seem rather contradictory. If what he did was noble, why was he jailed for his actions? When we take into account these manifestations of the government's attitude towards Martin Luther King, we can safely make the assumption that the government is not always justified in the laws that it creates. Our government's original purpose was to keep order and ensure freedom to its people. As history has shown us, as in the case of African Americans, the government will expand its role and take away liberties of the few. The individual is justified in acting out in civil disobedience when the government restricts the liberties of the individual.
Civil Disobedience is a deliberate violation against the law in order to invoke change against a government policy. Civil disobedience can come in the form of running a red light or j-walking, or in more noticeable methods such as riots. Coined by American author and poet Henry David Thoreau, the term has developed to define the act of disobeying a law one sees as unfit or unjust. Usually the purpose of civil disobedience is to gain public attention to a perceived injustice and appeal to or gain support from the public in a non-violent way. The idea is to force the government to negotiate or else continue with the unwanted behavior; or in simpler terms, to “clog the machine” (“Civil Disobedience”). It is believed by many that the act of civil disobedience is justifiable in a democratic government like that of the United States. A Democracy is defined as a form of government controlled by elected representatives or by the people themselves. However, in order to have a stable government, it must be built on a stable society. Societal welfare is the general good for the public and how its members take action to provide opportunities and minimum standards. According to societal welfare, which is the sake of the emotional and physical well-being of the community, the laws must be abided and civil disobedience is morally unjust in our society. Once any member of the society questions the affairs of the state, the state may be given up for lost (“Jean Jacques Rousseau”).
Civil disobedience has been around for a long time. In Bible times Christians would disobey laws that would go against their beliefs, such as the law that they couldn’t preach. (Acts 4) Christians still disobey laws in many countries that do not let them practice their faith, some end up in jail or killed.
The political concepts of justice and how a society should be governed have dominated literature through out human history. The concept of peacefully resisting laws set by a governing force can be first be depicted in the world of the Ancient Greeks in the works of Sophocles and actions of Socrates. This popular idea has developed over the centuries and is commonly known today as civil disobedience. Due to the works of Henry David Thoreau and Martin Luther King Jr. civil disobedience is a well-known political action to Americans; first in the application against slavery and second in the application against segregation. Thoreau’s essay “Civil Disobedience” and King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” are the leading arguments in defining and encouraging the use of civil disobedience to produce justice from the government despite differences in their separate applications.
History has spoken. The words of the weak started it. Their actions proved it. Disobeying a law is a crime that the offender should be willing to take the punishment for and let his sacrifice be used as a point to rally around to create a just, moral change. Whenever a law is deemed unjust, there is good reason for breaking it to achieve justice. Civil Disobedience will never be legal and those who employ it should be willing to accept the penalty that comes with breaking a law. It has been shown through historic cases, modern examples, and the core values of a democratic society that show Civil Disobedience not only works, but should be used as a tool to demonstrate the moral objectives that are being sought. Considering some laws are unjust and in contradiction with the core beliefs of society, there are certain times when breaking a law is reasonable, but it is by no means encouraged and should be done at the law breakers own risk.
By definition, civil disobedience means to actively refuse to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government or of an occupying power without resorting to physical violence (Wikipedia 2007). Many of the influential people in history have felt passionately about what they believe. These passions caused them to rebel against a government or authority. Many times they felt so strongly about what they believed and how they were being treated was wrong they became disobedient. They would take physical and verbal abuse for being disobedient but would never retaliate. They believed in what they thought was wrong and tried to change the way they were governed. Albert Einstein once said 'never do anything against conscience even if the state demands it.' Albert Einstein's views seem to be reasonable. The claim by Albert Einstein is accurate because people should stand up for what they believe, they should know when they are right and their government is wrong, and they should trust in themselves and their own beliefs.
"It is not desirable to cultivate a respect for the law, so much as for the right." This type of mentality and belief in a greater justice beyond the law persists throughout Antigone. Antigone’s wrongful actions relate to real life events. These inspiring events include The Salt March, the Boston Tea Party, and Rosa Park’s bus ride.
The Key to a Free Society “Protest beyond the law is not a departure from democracy; it is absolutely essential to it” (Zinn). The key to a true democracy is the ability to have a say in your own government. For the people to voice opinions and beliefs without fear of brutality from the government. America’s free society means that civilians have the right to petition the government according to the first amendment of the constitution without fear of being punished. Civil disobedience is a form of petitioning the government that helps the people set boundaries that the government should not cross.
Visualize that you are a person planning on leaving your home country because you are in a tough situation . For instance, there is an ongoing war and you don’t feel safe. While many people around the world deal with this problem and plan on immigrating to the United States in order to find hope and try to have a superior life than before, however many of these immigrants that come here are illegal. The United States should require a fair policy on illegal immigrants here are the reasons why: they’re misunderstood, they act like loyal citizens, and they want to pursue the American dream.