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An essay on civil disobedience
Civil disobedience in civil rights movement
Civil disobedience in civil rights movement
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Peaceful Resistance to laws Peaceful resistance to United States laws is a positive thing most of the time, but it can also very well have a negative impact. It is not right to condone or promote illegal activities, even if the people who commit the crime are willing to face the consequences. Protesting is a tremendous way for people to voice their opinion publicly in our free country. Although, disturbing the peace or taking violent actions can snowball from peaceful protesting. A lot of negative things have happened to people trying to people trying to voice their opinion. The most notorious event in history of protesters being taken out, would be the Kent State shooting. The Kent State shootings happened at Kent State University in
Others protest that has had an effect on America since the Amendment was ratified are protest against war such as Vietnam and Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Civil Rights Movement, and more recently the protest of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Seattle. Also the many strikes and pickets labor union have been involved in through out history. There are differences among these gatherings. The most striking difference is typically if the protest is violent or non-violent. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Henry David Thoreau referred to the use of civil disobedience. In the movie, ?Breaking the Spell? protesters felt they were not being violent since the items they damaged belong to big business.
One of the first documented incidents of the sit-ins for the civil rights movement was on February 1, 1960 in Nashville, Tennessee. Four college African-Americans sat at a lunch counter and refused to leave. During this time, blacks were not allowed to sit at certain lunch counters that were reserved for white people. These black students sat at a white lunch counter and refused to leave. This sit-in was a direct challenge to southern tradition. Trained in non-violence, the students refused to fight back and later were arrested by Nashville police. The students were drawn to activist Jim Lossen and his workshops of non-violence. The non-violent workshops were training on how to practice non-violent protests. John Lewis, Angela Butler, and Diane Nash led students to the first lunch counter sit-in. Diane Nash said, "We were scared to death because we didn't know what was going to happen." For two weeks there were no incidences with violence. This all changed on February 27, 1960, when white people started to beat the students. Nashville police did nothing to protect the black students. The students remained true to their training in non-violence and refused to fight back. When the police vans arrived, more than eighty demonstrators were arrested and summarily charged for disorderly conduct. The demonstrators knew they would be arrested. So, they planned that as soon as the first wave of demonstrators was arrested, a second wave of demonstrators would take their place. If and when the second wave of demonstrators were arrested and removed, a third would take their place. The students planned for multiple waves of demonstrators.
...vent changed the way protests were handled and many of the same laws apply to demonstrations today. There have been other protest that have gotten out of hand but none that compare to what happened at Kent State. New laws that require permits and specific places that protests can be held came into law after this event. Society today still holds protests over many things, the war in Iraq, the recession, and many other political ideas. This event showed me that their are many events in history that can change someones mind about the world. This event made me understand more of why people take sides in different ways. The senseless killing of these students reminds everyone that no matter what political view you have , you should have the right to protest peacefully as stated in the constitution. Everyone has the same rights and responsibilities as US citizens.
Most notably, the group of Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Tom Hayden, Rennie Davis, David Dillinger, John Froines, Lee Weiner and Bobby Seale, who were dropped from the case and charged separately (History.com web).... ... middle of paper ... ... In the case of Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Tom Hayden, Rennie Davis, David Dillinger, John Froines, Lee Weiner and Bobby Seale there was a great deal of injustice, however ultimately justice was served because all charges were dropped (Davis web). Although the men were protesting against a governmental war, they were not attempting to incite a riot.
MLK, Malcolm X, and multiple protests. Perhaps the most surprising is the footage of our country’s
While non-violent protests were politically correct, many participants often put their lives, families and property in danger. Particularly in the south, the KKK and other white supremacist groups gained a reputation for church bombings, lynching and other violent acts against minorities. Despite pacifist idealism in a public protest, it didn’t mean black were willing to let their homes, churches and loved ones go undefended. Many took it upon themselves to arm and protect their communities through any means necessary, and by acquiring as many weapons they could get their hands on. Many black southerners were prepared to meet violence with
Peaceful resistance itself does not affect a free society. A people-group can protest any number of laws: voting rights, taxes, and the legality of murder. A majority of society must determine what is best for itself. If the principles of a resistance aligns with the ideals of the society, the pursuit of betterment positively impacts that
The Free Speech Movement (FSM) at the University of California at Berkeley started during the fall of 1964. (Freeman, Jo) But there were many events leading up to this point. The Free Speech Movement began to obtain momentum in the fall of 1963 and the spring of 1964 the Bay Area was rocked with the civil rights demonstrations against employers who practiced racial discrimination. (Freeman, Jo) These students believed that this was wrong and felt the need to do something about it. So many Berkeley students were recruited for these protests from Bancroft and Telegraph which where the companies that were racial discriminating against races and groups of people.(Freeman, Jo) With these protest there were many arrest made of Berkeley students there were about 500 arrests made over several months. (Freeman, Jo)
One prime protest that Richard would find pivotal is the Black Lives Matter(BLM) Movement. The BLM Movement started as protests following the murder of Michael Brown but lasted to protest against the murders that continued. In the article, “Why understanding the Black Lives Matter Movement is so important” by Monte Frank, Frank compares the BLM Movement to the Civil Rights Movement back in the 1950’s and 1960’s. He shares his idea that in both movements, people took too long to decide that black lives did matter and took too long to want to start changing politics. As
From the Boston Tea Party of 1773, the Civil Rights Movement and the Pro-Life Movement of the 1960s, to the Tea Party Movement and Occupy Wall Street Movement of current times, “those struggling against unjust laws have engaged in acts of deliberate, open disobedience to government power to uphold higher principles regarding human rights and social justice” (DeForrest, 1998, p. 653) through nonviolent protests. Perhaps the most well-known of the non-violent protests are those associated with the Civil Rights movement. The movement was felt across the south, yet Birmingham, Alabama was known for its unequal treatment of blacks and became the focus of the Civil Rights Movement. Under the leadership of Martin Luther King Jr., president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, African-Americans in Birmingham, began daily demonstrations and sit-ins to protest discrimination at lunch counters and in public facilities. These demonstrations were organized to draw attention to the injustices in the city.
One evening in December 1773 was the first documented protest within the colonies, later would evolve in the United States (US) known as the Boston Tea party. From the beginning of the U.S conception, protesting is indoctrinated in our history, speaking out against government and unfair labor practices. As our history goes when the cries of the people are not heard, we protest. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits the United States Congress from enacting legislation that would abridge the right of the people to assemble peaceably. (1) Citizens’ from the young to the old, know these words, regardless what part of the country you are from. However, the operative word is ‘peaceful’. The reason for using the word peaceful, is a reflection on the less than peaceful protest of the “Boston Tea Party”. Justified by extremist
Throughout history, during the late 18th century, early and mid 19th century, and even today, many people peacefully resisted laws they felt attacked their rights as a U.S. citizen and as a human. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, and even the entire city of Baltimore, have all used peaceful protest to rally against an unjust or unfair law or situation they felt was surpressing them from the rights they have been given. In there efforts of their protests, they have positively effected our country today by deminishing segregation, kick-starting a fight against racism for generations and counting, and a drive to find equality between all types of people.
Some of the struggles include “civil rights in America, galvanized by the landmark Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka decision of 1954.” The Montgomery bus boycott happened on “December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks. who refused to give up her seat to a white passenger on a bus” she was arrested. Later, the Supreme Court ruled “segregated seating on public buses unconstitutional in November 1956.” Works Cited History.com-History Made Every Day.
The most famous act of civil disobedience in American history is seen in the Civil Rights Movement with MLK Jr. at the forefront. The civil rights movements sought inspiration from another famous act of peaceful resistance against the government, this movement was Indian independence movement(1). In this movement in a completely different society, the Indians practiced peaceful resistance
Peaceful resistance or civil disobedience to laws impacts a free society both positively and negatively. Peaceful resistance and demonstrations have been in the news quite a bit over the past few months. Black Lives Matter protests, the kneeling of athletes during the National Anthem, and protests concerning the President-Elect, Donald are a few of the most current that come to mind. I have seen good and bad come from these protests.