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Nonviolent philosophies and tactics
Civil disobedience during civil rights era
Civil disobedience during civil rights era
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Gandhi once said that there were two ways to face injustice - - violently or peacefully. In 1955, Rosa Parks stood for what she believed was right by staying seated and refusing to move. Some would call it rebellious, unlawful, or justifiable. However, according to the article "An Act of Courage, The Arrest Records of Rosa Parks" and Gandhi's speech on civil disobedience it would be called, satyagraha.
To Gandhi an act of civil disobedience can only be defined as, "... seeking reform by means of nonviolent resistance" (Gandhi, 1). Furthermore, in the article it states that, "... she quietly set off a social revolution" when she stayed seated (Rosa Parks, 1). She didn't hurt anyone by staying seated. She got tired of following all these commands and being discriminated that she refused to move. She hated how she was being treated and wanted a change. Moreover, Gandhi mentions that the one "combating injustice... alone suffer the consequences..." (Gandhi, 2). Which is exactly what Rosa Parks did. She allowed them to arrest her and she was the only one punished (Rosa Parks, 2). She didn't go start a violent riot and cause multiple people to
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suffer. She was a women who was tired of listening to people restraining her with unjust laws. Rosa Parks clearly did an act of civil disobedience. Although some would say that Rosa Parks was not breaking the law.
So it can't be called civil disobedience; however, in the eyes of the people and the government she broke the law of the land at that time. The law that white men are superior to colored men. Additionally, in the article it mentions that, "... the driver, believed he had the discretion to move the line seperating black and white passengers" and "the law was actually somewhat murky" (Rosa Parks, 2). During the 19th century the white men made the laws. So when, "the bus driver instructed her to move back, and she refused," she also refused the law (Rosa Parks, 1). Without a definite written law the whites are formulating "laws" that give them more power. This shows that when Rosa Parks peacefully objects to moving to another seat it can be labeled as
satyagraha. Rosa Parks caused a revolution that would change the future of colored people. She committed an act of civil disobedience that aligns with Gandhi's definition of satyagraha. As supported by the article "An Act of Courage, The Arrest Records of Rosa Parks" and Gandhi's speech.
Gandhi developed the idea of satyagraha which centered around nonviolent resistance to opposition and evil. The goal of this march was to protest the taxation on salt production and transport in India by the British government. Gandhi's march sparked a wave of civil disobedience which contributed to the expulsion of the British empire. This march had a long term effect, as it inspired many to take part in a successful, organized civil protest. Furthermore, the protest stimulated further motivation for other disobedience and influenced the thinking of many civil disobedience leaders, such as Martin Luther King during the Civil rights
Both of the speeches, Martin Luther King's and Cesar Chavez', are powerful peices and communicate one vision: equality. King and Chavez have two very different styles of writing but the message from both is simmilar. for example both king and chavez discuss how their people are discriminated against because of their skin color, and how their people have neither the right to vote in the the south, nor the will to vote in the north , and in Chavez' situation, to have their vote counted. however similar their message's may be, their writing styles are different. Chavez talks about statistics, about why and how his people are treated. king held that the atrocitys commited against his people were self evident and as such did not need to be proved to anyone. kings message was meant to encompass the entire Uninted States while Chavez' was directed primarily at California.
Throughout history, many historical figures that has had a very astounding impact on the world today were people who were willing to go against the norm or sometimes even the law. This act of civil disobedience is not a crime but rather it is a eye opener. This is because sometimes it takes breaking the law to show the flaws hidden within the law itself. In the case of Rosa Parks, her civil disobedience is what sparked change and allowed the nation to see the unsightliness of the law that put her and others into confinement.
On December 1, 1955, Parks was taking the bus home from work. Before she reached her destination, she silently set off a revolution when she refused to give up her bus seat to a white man. As a black violating the laws of racial segregation, she was arrested. Her arrest inspired blacks in the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to organize a bus boycott to protest the discrimination they had endured for decades. After filing her notice of appeal, a panel of judges in the District Court ruled that racial segregation of public buses was unconstitutional. It was through her silent act of defiance that people began to protest racial discrimination, and where she earned the name “Mother of the Civil Rights Movement” (Bredhoff et
Susan B. Anthony, women’s rights activist, once said “The day may be approaching when the whole world will recognize woman as the equal of man.” (“Susan” Brainy). Anthony was famous for helping women achieve many rights that were once only given to men. Susan B. Anthony’s involvement in civil disobedience was due to personal influences, she chose to participate in civil disobedience to protest the rights of women, and she did achieve success using this controversial method of standing up for what she strongly believes to be right. Civil disobedience is when people deliberately infringe a law. The person who breaks that law is usually willing to accept any consequences that would be given to them. (Suber). The purpose of civil disobedience is
“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.
Because she would not move to the back of the bus, she was arrested for violating the Alabama bus segregation laws. Rosa was thrown in jail and fined $140. Enraged by Mrs. Parks arrest the black community of Montgomery, united together and organized a boycott of the bus system until the city buses were integrated. The black men and women stayed off the buses until December 20, 1956, almost thirteen months after the boycott goal was reached. The Montgomery Bus Boycott can be considered a major turning point in the Civil Rights Movement because it made Martin Luther King Jr. public leader in the movement, starting point for non-violent protest as an effective tool in the fight for civil rights, and showed that African-Americans united for a cause could stand up to segregation. Being president of the Montgomery Improvement Association taught Martin Luther the skills and gave him the exposure to become a great leader of a movement as large as the civil rights movement.
In 1968, Martin Luther King Jr passed away from a sniper’s bullet. He gave us thirteen years of nonviolent protest during the civil rights movement of the 1950’s. Before I can give my opinion on the history of race relations in the United States since King’s assassination in 1968 strengthened or weakened his arguments on the necessity and value of civil disobedience? You should know the meaning of civil disobedience. The word civil has several definitions. “The one that is intended in this case is "relating to citizens and their interrelations with one another or with the state", and so civil disobedience means "disobedience to the state". Sometimes people assume that civil in this case means "observing accepted social forms; polite" which would make civil disobedience something like polite, orderly disobedience. Although this is an acceptable dictionary definition of the word civil, it is not what is intended here. This misinterpretation is one reason the essay (by Henry David Thoreau that was first published in 1849) is sometimes considered to be an argument for pacifism or for exclusively nonviolent resistance”.
When comparing two leaders, people tend to look at the characteristics, or leadership, traits that the person has. Even if the two people seem like an unlikely pair, it is the traits that prove the similarities. Courage, confidence and initiative are traits that both Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth President of the United States, and Rosa Parks, a civil rights activist, demonstrated during their time of leadership.
Rosa Parks was a member of the NAACP, lived in Montgomery Alabama, and rode the public bus system. In the south, during this time the buses were segregated which meant that black people had to ride in the back of the bus behind a painted line. White people entered the front of the bus and were compelled to sit in front of the painted line. Most buses at the time had more room for white riders who used the service less than the black ridership. Yet, they could not cross the line even if the seats in the front were empty (Brown-Rose, 2008). Rosa Parks made a bold statement when she sat in the “white section” of a Montgomery bus. She was asked to surrender her seat to a white man, but she did not move and was soon arrested. Her brave action started the Montgomery bus Boycott, with the help of the NAACP, none other than Dr. Martin Luther King’s leadership as part of the Montgomery Improvement Association. As its President, he was able spread the word quickly which brought national attention to the small town of Montgomery’s bus Boycott. The boycott was televised and brought so much attention that the United States Supreme Court ruled that segregation on public transportation was unconstitutional; a success spurring a more
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”.
Gandhi was known first for his nonviolence behavior and would condemn his own party opposing violence. Gandhi made use of nonviolent and passive resistance through non-cooperation as his weapon of choice in the conflict against the British. The butchery of civilians by British military personnel resulted in increased public anger and acts of violence. Mahatma Gandhi criticized both the activities of British Government and the revenge of the butchery from the Indians. He extended consolation to the British victims and denounced the riots. Initially his party was opposed to his declaration. Later, however, they accepted Gandhi’s principal stating that any retaliation or violence was hurtful and could not be justified. Inspired by Mahatma Gandhi success with nonviolent activism, Martin Luther King Jr. pushed forward his Civil Rights Movement with nonviolent activism as well. Although the two have personally never had contact, Dr. King learned of Gandhi 's discipline while in the seminary. His first application of the nonviolent campaign came in 1955 during the Montgomery bus boycott. Here, he had a witnessed firsthand the power of a peaceful
Nelson Mandela: The Art of Civil Disobedience 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.
An example of civil disobedience would have to be the famous story of Rosa Parks in which she was arrested for Civil Disobedience on December 1, 1955. Rosa Parks stood up for what she had faith in. At about night fall of December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks, being an African women, was burned out after an extensive day of working, predetermined to take a seat at the front of the bus for her ride home. She refused to give up her seat to a white commuter; she was then taken into custody for overstepping an Alabama law that required black people to give up their seats to white people when the bus was full. Blacks also had to sit at the back of the bus according to Alabama law. Rosa Parks arrest was successful by a one-day bus boycott on her court date. The NAACP knew it needed to carry forward with their action, to prosperously challenge segregated public transportation. The new pastor was Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in which he became the commander of the boycott. He demanded there be nonviolent actions to accomplish the objective of justice. Martin Luther King Jr. quoted, "We must use the weapon of love.” Rosa Parks being arrested flared a 381-d...
ISFJ strengths are that we are supportive, we share knowledge, experience, time and energy with anyone who needs it. They are also reliable and patient, loyal and hardworking. I think these really explain who I am because I like to think I'm all of those things. I tried to always be better than the person I was yesterday and that takes a lot of dedication and hard work.