“Under a government that imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison (Thoreau).” This quote means that if a person were to fight against unfairness and injustices, they would be willing face obstacles in society. Yes, when you are an outlier in those types of situations, you're doing a righteous thing. However, I don’t entirely agree with Thoreau. People must work to correct injustice, but sacrificing yourself to drawbacks won't do anything to help your cause. Our government has done things before that we find wrong today; we have seen injustice occur against people of color, women, immigrants, and more. In most, if not in all, of these instances, we chose to rise against the wrongdoings. “When injustice becomes
Pointing to the injustices which black Americans faced daily, Hayden argues that there is no way for these people to both work within the law and accomplish their agenda. Among the injustices Hayden highlights are economic inequality, political prejudice, and the view of white Americans that, “only military force stands between them and the black savages,” leading to a situation where, “the outright killing of people is condoned where those people cannot accept law and order as defined by the majority” (p. 167). Hayden continues, saying that, if it were possible, it would be more elegant for these Americans to work within the confines of the law. However, since it is not possible to do this, due to the stacked deck of society, black Americans must resort to a state of revolution in order to create and maintain a self-government that serves their
In paragraph 26 of “Civil Disobedience,” Thoreau claims the state punishes people who aren’t deserving, therefore all people deserve to be punished. In fact, Thoreau writes, the only place to be true to who you are is in jail. Thoreau thinks that jail is the only place that your opinion matters, as you’re in jail because of an action, and once in jail those same actions are better accepted by your peers. Thoreau adds that it is difficult to fight for what is right if you don’t know what is
On 11/28/2017, I, Officer Marisa Rhodeman #165 was working as a Police Officer in FTO Training along with WSU Officer Dillon Dickerson #155, for the Wichita State University Police Department (WSUPD), Wichita, Sedgwick County Kansas.
Superheroes; they save and protect the world’s people. They courageously stand up and battle against evil, anarchy, injustice, crime, and sin. When the world has nothing else to defend itself, they are the ones who are present with a duty to safeguard everyone. The superheroes you may know, such as: Superman, Batman, Iron Man, etc. all have extraordinary superhuman powers which they use to shield those in need. However, anyone can be a superhero. Throughout history, many people have become like superheroes not because of extraordinary powers, but extraordinary courage, bravery, humanity, and love. Those people made a choice to risk everything they had in order to save another human being. Is it the right thing for a person to stand up
“We are a nation that professes freedom, yet we have this mass incarceration, this hyper-incarceration, that is trawling into it, grinding into it, our most vulnerable citizenry, and is overwhelmingly biased towards people of color.” Booker’s quote serves to question the hypocrisy of our “democratic” government leaders. The American government has two faces: one for whites and the other for minorities. It comes out into the public and wears garments that portray freedom and equality for all. However, it reveals its bare self when it incarcerates and abuses minorities’ freedom to make rich white men more wealthy and powerful.
Throughout history, there has been discrimination against race, religion, gender, orientation, age, among many other things. From the British preventing the colonists’ rights to the “separate but equal” doctrine people used to justify discrimination against African Americans, America has had its fair share of it. After years of the mockery of equality that African Americans had, change was needed. Out of the thousands of voices who brought the winds of change, that were heard the most were: Martin Luther King Jr., for convincing people to join their cause; Thurgood Marshall, who used the law to get people to listen to their voices; and the Silent Majority, for without them, freedom would never truly ring from every mountainside.
America’s history is overrun with oppression and injustice based on race, ethnicity, and other traits that innocent victims have no control over. As a result, the reputation of the United States is forever tainted by it’s dark past, and still practices these surviving habits of hatred. Civil liberty issues faced since the establishment of the country have yet to be resolved because of the ever-present mistreatment, corruption in positions of authority, and the dehumanization of minorities.
The date is April 14, 1943. As I walk down the street to the studio I couldn't help but notice a group of soldiers headed right to where the Disney studio (where I work). Then I remembered that the government had sent a group of soldiers to the studio to guard it. As I entered the building I started to wonder if within the next hour a Nazi squad would show up at our front door? And if they did would they hold me hostage or could the American squad take them out before they could get to me or the crew. As soon as I get up the stairs and open the door it was pitch black.then I found out that the lights were out.
Now there is a lot that the United States could do to get rid of the death penalty. The government could pass a law on the Federal level or the states could individually do it. The last option would be the last option since many states, like Texas, would not willingly get rid of the death penalty. However if they, the Federal government should use a model similar to the European Model. It is common knowledge the stance of the European Union, but Behrmann and Yorke wrote it best in their article entitled “The European Union and Abolition of the Death Penalty:”
Though the concept of social injustice is universal in nature, the experience varies with each person. Factors like a person’ race, or gender can further influence the severity of the injustice; victims caught in the overlap between discriminations often go unrecognized by the law and society. Many people recognize the names Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Tamir Rice as African Americans who were murdered by local police. But names like Michelle Cusseaux, Tanish Anderson, and Meagan Hockaday often receive less feedback even though they are also murdered African Americans. The only distinction between the sets of names is gender. Even within racial injustice, discrimination is present between genders as some cases get national
Most of the things that read in both articles were new to me, but the first thing that caught my attention when reading the article The Gifted in Our Midst was the following:
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.
The Earth is dying. That is what environmentalists say all the time today. It shows up on the news now and then but proceeds to quickly disappear from people’s thoughts and minds. The experts warn and warn, but no one seems to listen. People are more concerned with cat videos than with the health of the one habitable planet they have. From a young age, people are told to think about the future, theirs, and this planet’s. Yet only a few people really do and actually care. The human population has grown uninhibited around the world and must decrease if the planet is to stay habitable.
Nine hundred and thirty-seven. That is the number of people assaulted and killed by law enforcement officers, this year alone. Our government is implementing laws and regulations that punish minorities and those without money so they cannot afford to live comfortably in our society. Citizens are being refused the right to serve in our nation’s military strictly because of the fact that they don’t conform to an archaic idea of a two-gender system. We are witnessing the Great Divide. American citizens are disunited based on issues of identity. With this divide, inequality has become an increasing issue, but strong individuals are unifying to fight for racial and gender equality. Many concerned individuals are fighting for equal opportunity in American society because our divided country allows some people to advance while others are held back.
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)