Do Protests Really Accomplish Anything?
Protests and mass demonstrations are a significant element of a good democracy. Demonstrations help raise global awareness among the less concerned in society. Politicians and bystanders notice when a protest happens. The standard reason why people protest is because either they are directly affected by the current issue or because they want to stand up and support the people who are directly affected by the laws of the government. Protests, in my opinion, are necessary because they instill a feeling that the majority is going to stand up against the partisan laws of the government which will make the government think twice before enforcing new laws.
In her article, Does Protesting Make a Difference?, Yasmin Khan claims that showing your support for a cause that helps defend the rights of a marginalized group is essential in order to inculcate a feeling of solidarity among the people. Protests uncover the disappointment of the general public about the
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There have been notable demonstrations throughout history that have succeeded but most of these rallies failed to achieve changes in public policies. The hodgepodge groups that participate have no formal affiliation with one another, no clear hierarchy, and no obvious leaders. The writer argues that even though the people are trying to make a difference by taking to the streets, the government’s response to such demonstrations is disappointing as they bring about little to no change to the targeted policies. According to him, it is very easy to gather an outraged group through social media. These marches, he argues, are detrimental to the community as it either ends in a violent confrontation with the police or it just dies out because of the lack of direction in the protestors; who are not kept engaged in the political
Throughout history, many solutions to a problem was protesting at where the official government or leader headquarters are without necessarily involving physical violence. Instead, verbal actions are used in this method of protesting. The purpose of this movement without actions is to stand up for what they believe in and try their best to put their country in the best conditions a environment could be. This can be interpreted as a peaceful movement that is aiming for a change in a restriction that can benefit the citizens in the community.
Throughout history, the citizens of America have led protests and movements against unjust actions by those in power, laws that seemed to violate one’s rights or laws that seemed to hurt or discriminate against others. These protests have been crucial to shaping the nation into what it is today.
Through protesting people can express their beliefs in a nonviolent way in order to raise awareness and possibly gain support from
In the United States, the protest has always been an important tool of democracy, a way for the minority to let itself be heard. Take the Civil Rights movement. Today's race relations are better than they were fifty years ago because a relatively small group of people convinced enough of the country that racism was a disease that would kill everything that made America special.
Although such protests are considered inconvenient, they publicize minority views. They compel people to stop, listen, and think. The public can better form solutions when people are aware of the issues at hand. Then, the people can vote to amend or create a law more fitting to modern
For contemporaries, many do not understand why the right to protest the government is important, and if they do so they do not carry out a protest to advocate for their cause. The reasons why many groups like the Black Lives Matter and Women’s Rights groups protest in today’s world is to try and better a corrupted system. The government is deeply flawed currently as there is a lot of power and money to be gained by passing certain legislation or by overlooking the natural born rights of an American citizen. With lobbyists throwing millions of dollars behind candidates, it is hard for the money not to go to the head of an elected official, and most likely as time goes on politicians begin to pass nefarious legislation at the cost of the American public. The public needs to realize that when they suffer at the hand of corrupted legislation, “[i]n the meantime politicians will find his opinions and interests [more important]… and those of other young people all too easy to ignore” (“Not Turning Out”).
In order to have an even stronger system we need our supporters to understand and believe in the action that is being protested. Social media is capable with not only getting in contact with other people but it allows you to grab those people’s attentions in many different ways. These followers need to be convinced and taught about the different options that they can be given. Many people follow trends, and with social media being a big part of the trend it makes it easier to have an audience. It is easy for people to invite people to a group, or event on Facebook or even having a following of tweeters on Twitter because people are able to add descriptions. In this descriptions majority of people who are protesting are able to write who they are, what the problem is, give ideas of solutions to the problem and overall a way to convince their readers to press ‘Like’, ‘re-tweet’, ‘Follow’ or ‘Attend’. With their explanation they can create a bandwagon of supporters and build a strong willed support system. Gladwell used the example of the Bhatia needing a bone-marrow transplant. Even though people helped by signing up for a donor registry and sending in a
As protesting goes on emotions build up which can result in a public revolt that
It is through protest that the government is able to recognize what the people believe. Without this there would be no changes, no reconsideration, and no progress.
When should civil disobedience be condoned? Should it be condoned? Civil disobedience is defined as the refusal to obey government laws, in an effort to bring upon a change in governmental policy or legislation. Civil disobedience is not an effort to dissolve the American government, because without government our society would result in chaos. Sometimes, when there is an unjust law and the government won't take the initiative to fix it, the public must act as civil disobedients to bring awareness and fix the unjust law. An unjust law is that which is not moral and does not respect the "god-given" rights which are entitled to every person. A law which allows freedom for some but not for others, on the basis of sex, sexual
Protesting has existed for decades as an option to get your voice heard. The problem is it cannot always be justify because of the occasional
Protests have long been an essential part of American life, employed to to draw attention to critical issues,events, and injustices. Ranging from peaceful marches to powerful acts of civil disobedience, not only in the United States but in Central American countries such as Nicaragua. This being said, civil protests and peaceful demonstrations were not necessarily more successful in exuding change than pieces of legislation but moreso acted as a catalyst for social change, leading towards legislation that would positively impact those who protested. The concept of civil disobedience and peaceful demonstration acting as a catalyst can be examined mainly through the protests during the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. and the Sandinista
This photo emphasizes the importance of silent protest and the power of gesture, political climates experience incredible shifts with movements such as these.
Being where we are supposed to be at the prescribed time is at the core of what we are as soldiers. It is basic soldiering and, as such, must be strictly adhered to. The ability to do so exhibits discipline and responsibility.
Since the dawn of human civilization, there have been governments. As a species, we have always attempted to efficiently and systematically maintain order. However it is not uncommon for those same governments to turn on the people it protects, as evidenced by the countless tyrants and authoritarian regimes that plague our history. When studying the complex subject of a free or oppressive government, it is rather interesting to look at the stark contrasts between how both of these organizations handle protests against their rules or laws. The authoritarian regime holds absolute power, meaning that nearly any form of complaint against their actions will be met with disregard, or even punishment. However in a free society in which the government must answer to the people, protests are the language of the discontent, signifying to a representative government that change is needed.