Justice Is A Just Society

In Martin Luther King’s, “Letter from Birmingham Jail” he explains what he thinks is a just law and what makes an unjust law.So what makes a just and an unjust law? A just law, according to King, is a man made code that squares with the moral code. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. In the world we live in today most laws are just, but many issues are caused by prejudice people. Many are afraid to suffer the consequences that come with standing up for what is right. For me, suffering the consequences would be worth it if not everyone is given equal rights, one race is being attacked about a certain law, and if a law forces me to do something I refuse to do.

The Republic by Plato examines many aspects of the human condition. In this piece of writing Plato reveals the sentiments of Socrates as they define how humans function and interact with one another. He even more closely Socrates looks at morality and the values individuals hold most important. One value looked at by Socrates and his colleagues is the principle of justice. Multiple definitions of justice are given and Socrates analyzes the merit of each. As the group defines justice they show how self-interest shapes the progression of their arguments and contributes to the definition of justice.

In The Republic, the great philosopher Plato attempts to reveal through the character and dialogues of Socrates that justice is better when it is the good for which men must strive for, regardless of whether they could be unjust and still be rewarded. His method is to use dialectic, the asking and answering of questions. This method leads the audience from one point to another, supposedly with indisputable logic by obtaining agreement to each point before going on to the next, therefore, building an argument.

A just society as one in which all citizens willingly subordinated their private, selfish interests to the common good

King brings in the question, what is a just and unjust law? A just law is one that promotes good morals and is followed by both the majority as well as the minority of society. Martin Luther King Jr. defines an unjust law as:

A just society defines a country where people have an equal opportunity to success and to achieve their goals. It is a country where people are equal and their cultural heritage, religious, and language rights are supported and respected. Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau had a goal to make Canada a just society. Canada achieved its goal of becoming a just society because of Collective rights, Civil rights, and Human rights.

“A citizen is a political and moral agent who in fact has a shared sense of hope and responsibility to others and not just to him or herself” (Henry Giroux). A good citizen will not only wish for the better of themselves and their loved ones, but also of the entire world as well. A good citizen will stand up for what they consider important. As the quote by Giroux states, it is a responsibility to others as well, as the brave citizen is doing the entire community a favor as well. The analysis included in this paper will allow a reader to fathom what it means to bring change about, to get one’s voice heard, and to stand up for one’s beliefs, hopes and desires. This paper will be proceeded in a manner that not only summarizes the key ideas presented in Soul of Citizen, but also a connection to past events, along with present events and incidents.

According to the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., there is a distinct difference between “just” and “unjust laws”. King writes, “A just law is a man made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law” (Michaelvdg 2010). This concept dates back to a philosophy developed by the Romans. The Roman’s code was between these two concepts, “Ius Gentium” and “Ius Naturalis”. Ius Gentium means a law that is universally practiced, where Ius Naturalis means natural law (Michaelvdg 2010). One way to explain the difference between the two is by using slavery as an example. Slavery was

The idea then of a just society I contend, comes down to people living under a fair and common law, order, political system, social organization, as well as everyone having personal and political freedom.

The constituents of a just society varies among the minds of humans. Throughout humanity, people have fought for what they believe is an ideal just world. Their perceptions of justice is dependent upon their upbringing, experiences, and surroundings. One can loosely define a just society in which the basic rights of humans are fulfilled. Nonetheless, as people’s views of justice are put in place, the meaning of a just society based on their outlooks becomes more intricate. Based on my own personal perspectives, a just society is an environment where people have access to all the necessities that a human must have to survive and where wealth is although not equally, but fairly distributed among everyone. Anke Graness’ Concepts of Justice in

This class is the first in my major of Criminal Justice, and throughout this class there will be a great deal of valuable information obtained. Justice can have several meanings to it because all of us are different in our own way, and we all will have different outlook on situations. Throughout this research paper you will learn about what justice means to me, and how I think I will impact society once I achieve my bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice. Secondly, you will be able to compare with the remaining of the class mates to see exactly how many of our views are the same or different. Last but not least, there will be at least two

Before we can answer these questions it is important to establish what is meant by the term ‘just'. ‘Just' in this case means ‘morally just', I think, but differences of opinion exist as to its meaning. For the purpose of this essay, I shall take ‘just' to mean ‘fair' in the way Rawls indicates when he writes about the veil of justice in 1971: the every-day-sense of the term the average person would agree about.

Justice comes in many form, economically, politically, and culturally. Justice has been explored and has posed with different definition in many eras. It is subjective to everyone and no two people has the same feeling. Individuals throughout society have their own distinctive explanation for justice. A truly just society can happen, but it will never be in a way where everyone will agree. I believe a just society stands with a strong leader that focuses on a unified cultural change in their country for the benefit of the people. King and Machiavelli both pursues a just society with equality between any race, unity, and are an open-minded leader.

Over the decades, the concept of justice has been continually evolving. This is occurring based upon different moral or legal interpretations. Evidence of this can be seen with observations from Burke (2011) who said, "Few things are of more importance to a society than its concept of justice. This is because it is justice that provides criterion for the legitimate use of force. In the name of justice people are detained, arrested, handcuffed, put on trial and punished. This concept is used to provide every society with some kind of social order. Over the last 200 years, a revolution has taken place with these principles. Our idea of it is what we employ, when dealing with ordinary individuals in daily life including: making agreements, paying bills, resolving disputes and putting criminals in jail. This is a concept that is as old as recorded history and it is familiar to people everywhere. What makes it so unique is that these ideas are constantly changing which focuses on society as a whole and how people are interacting with each other. " (Burke)

Whether a society is just or unjust depends on a person’s perspective and beliefs about fairness. The term unjust is derived from the word justice meaning, to be treated or behaving fairly. If a society is unjust, it means it is corrupt and unfair. Consequently, a just society is seen as a fair society. People who are a part of unjust societies can be oblivious to it because they might believe that it is just. For example, many Europeans seen America as an unjust society because of the different rules and laws enforced, but Americans might not agree. In fact, Americans could think that European society is unjust for their ways of life. Essentially, whether a society is unjust or not depends on the person and their beliefs. Around 400 BCE, the philosopher Socrates made his mark on society. In