Kaepernick's Failure Of Civil Disobedience In The United States

“Civil Disobedience,” by Henry David Thoreau is similar to the point the NFL star Colin Kaepernick is trying to get across. Henry says at the end of his writing The Civil Disobedience “Let Every man make known what kind of government would command his respect, and that will be one step toward obtaining it,” he is saying if people will start speaking up they will start to take notice what people is actually saying and wanting. NFL star Colin Kaepernick doing national anthem he will take a knee and not stand because of all the Black African Americans that's getting killed. Not just Black African American, but all the innocent that's getting served no justice. Both had spoke out against the governor and that's how Thoreau and Kaepernick are

America was founded on a principle of civil disobedience. With the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Founding Fathers set forth a powerful precedent. The Declaration said in part, that when institutions of government becomes destructive or abusive of unalienable rights, it is the right of the people to alter it or to abolish it. The history of our nation tells us that civil disobedience is a civic responsibility, and in the alleged words of Thomas Jefferson, “Dissent is the highest form of patriotism”. From the Boston Tea Party to the Stonewall Riots, the United States Constitution and advances in racial, social, and gender equality support the idea that peaceful resistance positively contributes to a freer society, and a more equitable America.

I believe that peaceful resistance to laws both positively and negatively impacts a free society. Civil disobedience is the refusal to obey certain laws and government demands one considers unjust, and accepting the consequences. The first amendment prohibits Congress to enact any law that would intervene with any person's civil rights. Though everybody knows this, why are there discussions about what people can and cannot refuse to do. Some people refuse to do things because it goes against their faith, which as stated earlier is allowed according to the first amendment. While others refuse to see what is right in front of them, in the very center of the Declaration of Independence.

The United States has established a baseline for all human beings to go by. This baseline, or what politics claims as basic human rights, protects all citizens of the U.S. against evil doings. When the U.S. created the Constitution, human rights were being ignored. People were not treated like people, more like cattle, actually. The corporeal reasoning behind this was skin color and poverty. The First Amendment protects any citizen against prosecution if they were to speak, do, or write something that someone else does not like. Some of these rights are the Freedom of Speech, the Freedom of Protest, and the Freedom of Religion.

Colin Kaepernick is an NFL quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers. Over the past season he decided to voice his opinion on injustice in the United States by taking a knee during the national anthem. He believes there is still a racial divide throughout the nation. His goal by taking a knee was to make people aware of the situation in the most peaceful way possible. Even though many people criticized him for what he was doing, many others were very happy to see someone in a position like his trying to voice his opinions. There were numerous other NFL players that sided with Kaepernick, and also took a knee during the national anthem.

Assembly can lead to change or it can lead to horrible circumstances, sometimes planned or sometimes accidental. Over the years people have used and abused their right to assemble, many have died, even more have been arrested. But, many issues have changed because of this right. Violence has been endured, and people’s lives have been changed. The Vietnam War is a perfect example of a group of protests that had many different outcomes. The Kent State shootings and the Democratic Convention of 1968 are examples of protests that went terribly wrong. Sit-ins and singing protest songs against violence are examples of peaceful protest.

Since the beginning of american history there have been peaceful and non peaceful protests. These protests have had valuable effects on American society such as Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks have impacted society greatly and for the better. In my opinion peaceful protests still have negative effects though they are immensely more appropriate than non peaceful protests because peaceful protests often turn violent because people don't know how to act for example Trump Protests.

Players are encouraged to stand during the National Anthem for the special ceremony of the pre-game. However, Colin Kaepernick decided to stay seated through the ceremony, in protest of unequal treatment by police on the blacks in the United States. Colin did not violate any law or disrespect the American flag. He justified given his right by under the constitution. Colin stood up for the Constitutional Right, along standing up for what he believes in. Kaepernick stood up from the mistreatment from the police to his kind and didn’t do any type of harm.

To all the people who are upset that the Constitutional right of protest is being used to show how unfit Donald Trump is to be President of the United States: People are protesting against his hate filled policies, and how he has instilled fear and hatred in people. Hate and fear have no place in this country, yet many Muslim women are removing their Hijabs for fear of being beaten in the streets. Immigrants who have gained the right to live in The United States by the citizenship process outlined by the Government, are scared that the rights guaranteed to them will be revoked. Women are scared for their safety. African Americans have already been called obscenities and told to go back to picking cotton. This all has happened in a matter of

We want to forget about politics, personal problems, and we look forward to sports, music, art and any other forms of entertainments. Everyone has a different view, opinion, ideas and that’s why we have the men and women in uniform who fought for us and are currently fighting. However, we have the first amendment and other amendment in the constitution which applies when unfairness cause a disruption of a population. In addition, the amendment is a book of rules, and for me as long as we are following the rules and not physical and emotional harming others, we deserve to protest in a safe way. We can interpret opinions in different forms, however, if we stop and reflect on that particular message we can find different interpretation and meaningful hidden messages.

These events of the election lead me to ask Alejandra and Fernando about the anti-protest that have been bursting out all over the country. I asked Alejandra and Fernando how they feel about them and if they had participated in an any of the protest. (Fernando) – “Well right after they announced the winner a lot of people at UCLA were not happy so they started a protest against Donald Trump. It was around 11:50 pm when the protest happened. I would have joined but I had a long day from work and school and I had to wake up early the next day. Is not that I didn 't care and I didn 't want my voice to be heard I was just not emotionally ready I literally started crying. Although I wasn 't there physically I was there in spirit because it was great to have a community back you up. I could hear the chants of "f*** Donald Trump," "We want equality, not supremacy," and "we hate Trump" then after that they quickly faded away. I heard from friends that the protest was around 600 students and it ended up really late like around 3 in the morning. Although I was not present my protest is getting my education and to achieve my goals. As well as to empower others and to show them that anyone can achieve anything if you believe in yourself. As well as to show my community and people of color that they belong at UCLA”.

Similarly, Trump Resistance also claims that the president and the government are the threat for citizens in US because they do not listen to their voices carefully. In addition, they argue that all people such as women, immigrants and other minorities have to be treated equally. According to Trump Resistance, protesters say “No to Trump and no to any future leaders who prey on our fear and lie to us plainly.”

After reading “Civil Disobedience” by Henry David Thoreau, I believe that this historic piece of literature can still have a substantial impact upon the current beliefs of the American people. The reason that this essay has such significance to America is because this essay addresses the proper way to go about civil disobedience in addition to providing education about the nature of civil disobedience. I believe the most significant message that this essay could teach Americans is expressed in this quote, “A wise man will not leave the right to the mercy of chance, nor wish it to prevail through the power of the majority.” This quote expresses the need to not just believe in a cause but to actively support it. This is in contrast to a wide spread phenomenon called false activism that is prominent in society. We all know someone who is, and for the most part all of us are guilty of seeing a cause online, claiming to support it, and then not doing a single thing to progress the cause. For example, most everyone you talk to would claim to strongly support more environmentally friendly methods of gathering energy yet the majority of us have not done anything to progress the cause of green energy.

In light of the recent presidential election, many people fear for their freedom as restrictions on immigration, religion, and abortion rights have been proposed. As a result of this, on January 20th, countless citizens banded together across America in “Women’s Marches”, the largest of about 400,000 people at Washington, D.C. (10 Actions). At these protests, advocating for people of all genders, races, ethnicities, and sexual orientations, zero arrests were made. These peaceful gatherings gained the attention and unification of many people across the country and motivated citizens to continue to organize events. At the Women’s March on San Francisco, it was said by a speaker that we are “on the right side of history”. As people continue to vocalize their disagreements with the government, change will always be made, though it may be

With over five million women, men and children united in all seven continents, the Women’s March was by far the largest and most peaceful protest in history. Washington, Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Sydney and Paris are only a few out of the many cities world-wide that all groups of ages, genders, races and religions merged together on January 21st, 2017 to send a clear message to the brand-new government of the United States. Accumulating no arrest, the protesters conveyed that all rights are women’s rights, making the demonstration a successful act of civil disobedience. Although the Women’s March has yet to force the Congress to reform civil policy, the protest, along with all peaceful resistances, continue to positively impact free societies.