The Philosophy of Nonviolent Protest - Term Paper Example

The Philosophy of Nonviolent Protest Introduction Political philosophies were developed to create a voice and to move against the injustices and inequality of government. By following political principles, there was a way to present a movement against the policies of the government while recreating the equalities desired in society. A voice that has been used to create this change is from the philosophy of non – violent protest, which created alternative ways to approach political and cultural injustices. The concept of non-violent protest prevented uprisings from occurring that would lead to injury and death. This was substituted with active voices and progressive actions that led to change against injustices. The basis of nonviolent protest came from the philosophies of Henry David Thoreau. This followed with several political and cultural leaders that followed the main philosophies of Thoreau and which focused on creating higher levels of equality and freedom for the cultural and social aspects of society. More importantly, each of these leaders was able to create a voice that was based outside of violence and which instead gained prestige from the use of actions and alternative forces to change the current political environment. Civil Disobedience and Non – Violent Protest The basis of the philosophy of non – violent protest was known to come from Thoreau’s book, Civil Disobedience, which was written in 1848. The main concept that is pointed out in this book is based on the current government and the injustices and lack of freedom that came from policies of the government. Thoreau points out that any violent protests are an arm of the government and represent a sense of injustice that is associated with politics. Thoreau believes that the use of violence and the army is one that creates a lack of integrity from the government. More importantly, Thoreau points out that the army alone is one that eventually leads to the inability for a country to be free or to function through the democratic ideals in which it is founded on. The challenge that Thoreau places is to create a better environment, which is specifically based on adding in integrity and an initiation to end violence through the country. The first ideology that Thoreau gives with the basic concept of the government and using non – violent protest is based on the moral obligations that are in the government. Thoreau believes that the use of violence is one that initiates a lack of integrity and the inability to have responsibility to humans and life. More importantly, the use of violent force doesn’t allow men to act with freedom, but instead to act in response to what is expected with force and violence. Thoreau states, “The mass of men serve the state thus, not as men mainly, but as machines, with their bodies…. In most cases there is no free exercise whatever of the judgment or of the moral sense; but they put themselves on a level with wood and earth and stones; and wooden men can perhaps be manufactured that will serve the purpose well” (Thoreau, 4). The concept of morality as well as freedom of choice and of the way that one serves is one of the basic philosophies that Thoreau uses when showing the concepts of the injustices of government. Thoreau bases the rest of his argument on is one that is created to show higher levels of respect as well as aspects that focus on morality created from equality, liberty and respect. The philosophy of violent protest, according to Thoreau, then moves into details of what constitutes liberty and freedom as a moral obligation. There are several statements that question the concept of duty, as opposed to the morality that is based around freedom. The basis of Thoreau’s philosophy when questioning the freedom and morality is one that leads into concepts of tolerance, honesty and the ability to respect other’s opinions and beliefs. Thoreau believes that, for one to protest efficiently, there should be the use of voice that can be heard against the government. Thoreau also states that the concept of violent protest, as an obligation of the country, is one that is not a just law. Those that follow orders for violence are also moving against their own freedoms and actions of free will and moral obligation. Not obeying the laws that move against morality, according to Thoreau, is more important than following the authorities and taking away one’s life, liberty and happiness. The injustice that Thoreau places above all others is when one’s freedom is taken away for violent protest and the militia that is built around the government. The non - violent protests that Thoreau believes in instead are based on moving outside of governmental considerations and into alternative ways to create a voice. For instance, not paying his taxes and being locked in the jail was a way for him to create a voice without violent protest and to show that there was the need to have specific freedoms and changes with these policies. The actions of free will, according to Thoreau, were stronger than violent protests made from unjust laws in the country. For an individual to be a part of nonviolent protest, according to Thoreau, was the need to define the forces that were trying to make one move into their specific way of life. However, Thoreau also points that this is always based on physical commodities and needs. The strategy that Thoreau challenges individuals to use for a stronger voice is to use free will and morality to create a stronger response from the government. “The State never intentionally confronts a man’s sense, intellectual or moral, but only his body, his senses. It is not armed with superior wit or honesty, but with superior physical strength. I was not born to be forced. I will breathe after my own fashion” (Thoreau, 17). The attitude that Thoreau creates is one that shows that through the use of morality and intellect, one can use nonviolent protest to overcome the specific situations that one is in. Later Actions of Non – Violent Protest The main philosophies that Thoreau created through his time in prison and non – violent protests then led to others who adopted this same philosophy. The first that was known to apply the philosophies of nonviolent protest was Martin Luther King Junior. King acknowledged the same philosophies of Thoreau and used nonviolent protest to show free will and to create a voice in society, specifically for the freedoms of the African – American culture. While the main concept was based on cultural identity as a moral obligation, there was a basis for creating a voice that was based on freedom and liberty. The nonviolent protest that was seen began not only with King, but also through Rosa Parks and her decision to not leave the bus and instead to be arrested. While there was no violence used, Parks was able to create a voice about freedom and moral obligation that was heard throughout the country and which began to change the course of events for the nation and for King’s protests that followed. The concept that Parks used were then further initiated by King as he moved through several protests that were not based around violence. For instance, the war on slums that King began to fight in Chicago was developed not by protests or physical action. Instead, King met with church leaders and created a war that was based on intellect and moral obligation, similar to Thoreau’s philosophies. The activists that were a part of the initiatives that King took were based on providing new programs that would help to overcome the current situation for African – Americans and which would create a new set of opportunities for those that were facing cultural differences in the region. To complete this project, King made over 25 speeches in 24 hours, all which were designed to enhance the area and to continue to create a voice about free will and moral obligation (Garrow, 434). Similar to Thoreau, King based his protests on free will, intellect and morality while taking action for change. The results of this led to more opportunity for the culture and community while providing enhancement through the voice of African – Americans without leading to violent protests. The same concept that King and Thoreau used was also implemented through Gandhi’s movements in India. The main approach that Gandhi was moving against was based on British rule, which was causing division in each of the regions of India. The main voice that Gandhi created within the country was based on the country keeping their liberty and their freedoms without the British rule taking over the different areas and the land. However, instead of using violence, Gandhi began to move against the boundaries that British rule created, such as sitting in the front of the transportation compartments and going on hunger strikes to stop violence. The different actions that Gandhi took were similar to Thoreau, where he used his voice, intellect, free will and moral obligations to change the way that individuals responded to the injustices of India. The more that Gandhi acted in a nonviolent manner, the more prestige he gained over the land. More importantly, his actions forced the British rule and the political agendas to begin to shift. By doing this, he was able to create a voice that was based on the freedoms of the land. The influence that Gandhi had in creating the voice of freedom that was needed was then able to lead to forced change and justice from the government. An important component of Gandhi is that the nonviolent protest also led to him as a leader and national figure. However, the hunger strikes and nonviolent protests that he was a part of were from an individual basis. Even though he didn’t have others that were a part of his initiatives, he was still able to create the voice needed while representing the desired freedom that was needed for India at the time. Ghandi’s main approach is one that can be seen as influenced through Thoreau. The actions that were taken gained quick recognition and forced the British rule to change because of the support that he gained. This was similar to Thoreau, who gained recognition through his time in jail, which created a voice that protested against the government and which forced change. The actions that were implemented by both Ghandi and Thoreau were based on the idea of gaining freedom outside of the government, which is related to the concept of civil disobedience. Ghandi’s desire to not support the government and to move against the different aspects of the British Rule through non – violent protest was similar to Thoreau’s. The main philosophy in both instances was to create a definition of freedom and moral obligation that was a part of the individual rights and which moved specifically against the government that was in both of the regions. With both of these concepts, there was the ability to create a different voice that moved against the government; however, it didn’t result in physical actions that could be taken by the policies of British rule. Another leader that showed this same influence of Thoreau was Cesar Chavez. The main development that Chavez created, as depicted in The Fight in the Fields was based on a non – violent movement that would give Latinos the same rights as others. The nonviolent movement that Chavez used was to create the United Farmworkers Union, which also led to the Latino Civil Rights Movement in America. The concepts that were applied through the system that Chavez created used the same principles as Thoreau, which were based on fighting with intellect and morality. Chavez’s main achievement was through the Union, which forced those in government and politics to support what was occurring within the region. More importantly, the Union and the unification of Latinos in America created a stronger protest that allowed a stronger voice to be heard through America. By doing this, there was the ability to protest for rights while creating specific actions that demanded the freedoms of Latinos in the country. The concepts that Chavez used were congruent with the philosophies that were used by Thoreau. The use of intellect and moral obligation, as well as the focus on freedom and liberty were the main components that were a part of this. More importantly, there was the ability to create a different relationship to those that were in the government by creating different systems and methods that could be used against the main governmental systems. Similar to Thoreau, the use of free will and action that led to a sense of freedom provided more insights and abilities to those that were a part of the movement. The political philosophies were then able to contribute to the nonviolent protest by creating stronger reactions that were from the government while gaining a national voice that could be used for freedom and equal rights among the individuals. Contributions to Nonphysical Protest More importantly than the basic concepts used from Thoreau’s concept of civil disobedience, were specific actions that contributed to the overall philosophy of nonphysical protest. Each of the leaders that were a part of the movements gained international recognition and were able to show an example of freedom and what was required for equal rights. More importantly, each of the individuals showed different methods and intellectual components that could be used to gain freedoms and specific rights. Doing this provided a basis for the moral obligations that were to be given by the government. More importantly, it served as an example to show how the voice of a specific people needed to be heard while allowing change to occur for specific freedoms and to change injustices. The examples that were created from each to these leaders was then able to provide deeper understandings into the concept of nonviolent protest and the initiatives that could be taken to move outside of the government for new freedoms and equality. Conclusion The concepts that were a part of nonviolent protest can be seen from the philosophies and example of Thoreau. The leaders that followed this specific ideology were able to change the concepts of morality, freedom, injustices and obligations that were a part of the governmental system. The creation of voice that moved into the demand of rights among certain groups became a main component of nonviolent protest. More important than physical concepts of protest, the nonviolent actions were able to create new initiatives, actions and components that pushed the government into changes for freedoms and expectations that were a part of society. Using this methodology to create a basis for freedoms and movements against injustice from the government has been able to create a silent revolution from different voices. Each of the nonviolent protests has altered the historical events of the time and has created a way to state the rights and justices needed within a society. Read More