America: a country built on the beliefs that all people are equal, free, and are entitled to the pursuit of happiness. The Constitution is the ultimate law of the land that provides basic rights and rules to the people within the country and how it should be run. With each generation, new problems and issues arise, inspiring groups to stand up for what they believe in. Peaceful resistance to laws positively impacts a free society. One of the biggest positive impacts peaceful resistance has on a free society is the ability to allow a person’s, or group’s, voice to be heard in a safe manner. The First Amendment of the Bill of Rights grants the freedom of speech to all in in the United States of America. This allows a person to not be arrested or shamed for something they said. They are entitled to their own opinion. They don’t have to feel bad about what they believe or what they think. This basic right fuels the start to peaceful protests. It encourages people to take a stand and not have to worry about being attacked by police officers or beaten down. The absence of violence allows the protestors, or resistors, and their desired audience to focus on the issues present. They aren’t distracted about bodies lying on the side of the road or about money spent to repair damages. All distractions are off the table …show more content…
They continue to grow, learning from the past, and spreading their effect across the globe. As the population increases, more voices are to be heard and opinions to be expressed. The Women’s March across America earlier this year has been one of the biggest peaceful protests in America. Cities across the country assembled to protest against defunding Planned Parenthood, making abortion illegal, and having men in the government controlling the lives of women. The large scale and power of this march created an overwhelming amount of support; all of this was done without the use of
Our right to free speech and to peaceably assemble is protected in the First Amendment, and is something we should take seriously. "Congress shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances" (Amendment I). One area of "peaceful resistance" is petitioning to government leaders and taking a stand on what is true and godly. When this is done, people have the opportunity to give government officials a point of view that perhaps they would have never considered
The Constitution of the United States of America provides citizens with the right to freedom of speech, peaceable assembly, and to air grievances in the first amendment. However, refusal to abide by laws is breaking the law. Whether it is lawful or not, peaceful resistance positively impacts a free society. As a democratic republic, Americans elect representatives to essentially do their bidding in government, trusting their judgement and knowledge when making laws.
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.
Peaceful protest leads to both positive and negative impacts on a free society. The main issue of the society isn't just people making bold moves like these, it has to do with people being able to accept them and not deal with it in a violent way, thinking that, that is acceptable and going to solve anything, when it really make it
Peaceful resistance positively impacts a free society, particularly in a Democracy such as the United States. Abraham Lincoln famously described our national foundation as a “government of the people, by the people, for the people”, and for such a statement to be true, it is necessary that voices of US citizens be heard.
Peaceful protests, that is a protest without violence, are a way to try and persuade those in power to enact or not enact a certain law. This is known as acts of civil disobedience. A typical example of this are rallies or protests against something, where people gather peacefully for or against the same thing. People engaging in civil disobedience could also engage in vows of silence, marching, fasting, and many other peaceful ways to stand up against the inequalities or injustices that they are experiencing. The reason that this is done and is important is because the other option is to violently protest or cause more problems. This is not a good way to go about it because even if it comes from a justified place of hurt or anger, it could result in more harm and arrests than are already happening. Even if theses protests or marches get intense, fights breaking out can happen but the goal is always to be nonviolent. The reasons that civil disobedience is seen in such a negative light is because many people equate it to the violent examples. They view it as the people who are violently protesting, getting pepper sprayed and arrested by cops. Even that isn’t a justified opinion because those people getting paper sprayed and arrested often times are
Resistance can cause tension and division between people, but peaceful resistance is a pathway for those to express themselves without violence. In all honesty I think the positives trump the negatives because in the end they are fighting for what they want and what they should rightfully have. Isn't that what America has been built off of? The fight for what we want and what we know is right, while proving that is so. And for those who question "What has happened to us? Why is it necessary, at this moment, in this forum to repeat what should be axiomatic and accepted?" (Civil Disobedience: A Threat o Our Society) clearly have never faced injustice from those around them or the government. It's necessary because these people have been treated unfairly and should not let what their ancestors fought for to go to waste. People need to get out of their own heads and realize that injustice still exists, inequality still exists, the government has too much say in what happens in our lives and that is something not many see everyday. For example, my town is very safe and isolated. I've grown up never having seen violence, social prejudice, or anything unfair, which for a child is great for protection, but growing up it made me and many around me ignorant to the world and what really went down around our small bubble. I would watch the news and hear about gun violence, kidnappings, rallies, and other dangers my mind couldn't fathom. Although I'm happy to
It’s hard to make people listen. It’s hard to make people want change. And using violence brings a bad reputation to what one is trying to bring attention to. Thus, peaceful protesting and civil disobedience are important tools to positively impact a free society. Accepting the consequences of civil disobedience proves to the world that one will sacrifice whatever is necessary to achieve what they are fighting for, which strengthens their message even more.
Peaceful resistance to laws is one of the strongest and most important foundations of a free society. Countless peaceful demonstrations have been led in the history of the United States, with positive outcomes that have helped shape the country.
Some opening examples of how peaceful protests are favorable can be seen in the movie “Battle in Seattle”. There was a protest going on about the WTO meeting taking place in Seattle in 1999. The mayor knew that there would be protests. He said “Be tough on your issues, but be gentle on my town.” He was encouraging peaceful protests, stating that citizens had the right to take a stand for their beliefs. Most of the protesters were peaceful and creative, being disruptive was how they advocated to the general public their message. Their protest to get the WTO meeting to stop and to educate citizens was peaceful and effective. They went to extreme measures to stop the meeting, such as linking their arms together to form a giant chain. They stood up and stood firmly for what they believed was right, even knowing what could happen to
Peaceful resistance is a major part of American history, from the American Revolution to the 1960’s Civil Rights Movement to the Travel Ban protests of today. These instances of peaceful resistance shape American society for the better, as the voices of minorities are heard and unjust laws are ended. Peaceful resistance does positively impact a free society, as supported by Henry Thoreau, demonstrated by the 1960 Civil Rights Movement, and anticipated by protests of today.
Peaceful resistance to laws positively impacts a free society. It makes sense for laws to be followed, but some laws are wrong. So are people supposed to follow laws that are wrong? Yes,the law is the law, and people have to follow it no matter what their opinions are. But they should try to change the laws if they could. People of the same opinion should gather together, start a petition or a silent boycott, like Martin Luther King did in the 1960's. As Rosa Parks, also civil rights activist of the 1960's once said,"You must never be fearful of what you are doing when it is right." This quote is true everywhere, especially in a free society like America where the Constitution guarantees that these rights are not to be oppressed.
Peaceful protest can be an effective and beneficial way to make a point about how many in a population feel strongly about an issue, yet many protests do not go as intended. The idea is to calmly make your opinion known, to get noticed and to demonstrate the sheer mass of opposition to a particular topic. Peaceful protest alone is not harmful, it is simply a group of people
Peaceful resistance to laws positively impacts a free society. Rather than having violent movements and harming citizens, it is better to peacefully resist. Once a violence is used, the resistance to the law becomes nulled. People tend to not follow a violence protester. Once a violent riot starts, chaos is everywhere. People forget what they are truly fighting for. They unconsciously run away with the fear of getting harmed and dare not to go back. A peaceful resistance on the other hand leads citizens to join and support. People are able to see what they are fighting for and their real intentions. They are able to stand and cause no problem to people passing by as they are showing their support through silent voices. Many famous activists and leaders are for nonviolence. Mahatma Gandhi, a primary leader of India’s independence