page on."4

.-. ? UUR FUTURC IS IN THE TRUTH; OUR gglﬂg IS IN THE TRUTH; OUR ANSUERs ARE IN THE TRUTH; OUR HApprggss IS IN THE TRUTH; ,YET, IT 15 YOU, o,TRUTH, FROM UHICH wE RUN UITH SUCH HASTE! MEN ARE SUCH FOOLS!

- MINERVA *

THDREAU AND CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE'

In recent years civil disobe— dience has become an increasongly important part of the political scene. It is an alternatice which many of us might one day have to seriously consider as we seek to improve our society. To arrive at some understandeing of this topic one must first consider a definition of civil disobedience.

Barl Cohen in Ciyil Disobe- dience has isolated some common features of most definitions. Civil disobedience is, 1) an act of protest deliberately unlawful, conscientiously and publically performed, 2) usually non-violent in nature and 3) performed within the framework of the existing political authority. A brief dis- cussion of these terms will serve to indicate there (sic) intended meaning.

The civil disobedience must of course first break the law and do so deliberately. If a group were protesting an unjust municiple law by parading with placards through the streets and without 'knowing brole a law which required they have a parade permit, their law-breaking while uncaotious was not an act of civil disobedience. The term accidental civil dis— fobedience is then a contradiction. The law one chooses to disobey however need not be the one thought Ito be unjust; indirect civil dis— abedience uses a law symbolically zappropriate or one that will gain immediate public attention.

Protest of some law believed unjust is the intent of the civil disobedient. A person, by going through a stop light when no other 'cars are in sight is being delib— erately unlawful, non-violent and possibly publically performing for, nearby pedestrians but he is not a civil disobedient. His act lacks the spirit of protest to injustice

‘which civil disobedience must em- ' body. Private gain is not its. goal. In fact if unsuccessful, civil disobedients stand to lose 'quite a bit. The protest then should be a conscientious act. “the actor is aware of and accepts the penalties that might ensue.

Being an act of sacrifice-for higher goal or principle, it is designed to gain public attention of the object of protest. It is moral coercion and a plea for ‘support as the civil disobedient bones—t’fy believes he Tﬁoogg , iright to act illegally. In itself “this is not a justification of the

'or property.

[Henry David Thoreau. ,he refused to pay his taxes to a ,government which accepted slavery

past but it is a necessary condition ‘for the act to be morally justified. Public performance also requires that the authorities responsible for enforcement of the particular law be made aware that the law was or will be broken.

By "non—violent" i mean that the act does not deliberately and directly use force to injure people Violence in most cases would be inconsistent with the goals of-the protesters and their claims to moral integrity.

The final element of the de— finition indicates that the civil disobedient recognized the validity of the government involved and is willing to submit to its final de- cision on his action. Political reform is the goal not revolution. If the civil disobedience is in- direct, the protesters admit they broke the law and acceptspunish— meny. Even in direct civil dis- obedience it is admitted that the law was broken, but it is attempted in court to prove the law unjust.

_ The origin of the term civil disobedience is attributed to Essentially

and wager an unjust war of terri- torial expansion in Mexico. Con- sidered in terms of our definition, Thoreau's act was non-violent, in— ldirect and quite deliberately un- lawful. His sense of injustice is indicated by his words; "...this people must doses to hold slaves, and to make war on Mexico, though it cost them their existence as a people." Since he openly admitted to the act and later attempted to justify his disobedience in his essay Civil Disobedience, he sat— isfies the "public performanca" ~requirement of the definition. ‘llong with the fact that he did not resist goeng to jail these considerations allow Thoreau's .act to be called civil disobedience _in terms of our definition.

Final remarks should probe some of the problems involved in yjustification of civil disobedience. If it is to be justified it cannot ‘be done legally, since the legal system can't be expected to permit the breaking of lwas which it must believe to be justified. To .bring a law to the court's atten- 'tion it is usually necessary to break that law. While this is on" fortunate and may aid one in gain~ ing sympathy towards his disobed- iisnce it is not a legal justifi- ' cation; Even if someone breaks the law and is successful in his defence, the legal decision is that he was not actually disobed— -ient; not that his disobedience was right. _

5 JustificatiOn must them come 'from outside the legal system such as an appeal to divine or natural law. or simply to higher govsrn— mental authority. Thoreau placed emphasis on conscience.as the final point of reference, a natur— al law appeal to basic criteria of moral conduct. Even given agree— ment on basic moral principles there is great difficulty in gate ting agreement on interpretation of the standard used and how it ﬂapplies to the particularzeeee. ’Rope31e to the constitution might

r a maternal!

I guisa of civil disobedience.

yactions.’

'ceem more realistic but thewpro- I blem of interpretation and appli— cation still remain very difficult.

In what is termed the utilit— arian argument the protester says that his act, given all the~cir— cumstances involved will in the long run lead to a herrer society than if he had obeyed. while the ‘ person who appeals to a higher law in'effect says he was abeying'some over-ruling source rather than simplydisobeyind'the>1ew, the uti- litarian argues that breaking the law in his situation was the best means to a valued and.* In most instances it is probable that the, utilitarian approach can get agree— ment about his end goal which will ' be something like opposition to violence or poverty. Justifying his method will be much more dif- ficultﬁif only for the reason that no significant study has been done by social scientists on the effects of civil disobedience.

Often civil disobedience is interpreted as contempt for the law, as taking the law into ones hands and encouraging disrespect and anarchy. This I think is a reaction to disobedience in the The' spirit of civil disobedience is Conscientious and'self sacri— ficing in its acceptance of legal and resulting social penalties and in its public notification of rintentinn. The civil disobedient does not intend to undermine the authority of all laws by a claim 'to other standards. 'He is how-

‘ever saying that free people must

choose between obedience and dis— obedience for any law, but he is_ careful no note that one of the najot moral considerations is his oblogatio to respect the rights ful legal authority as far as pos- sible.. Civil disobedience then may cultivate respect for laws as it takes them quite seriously.

If anyone follows the example of

’ a civil disobedient, it would'

rarely be for the fun of possible

maltreatment and legal punishment. Civil disobedience can create pub~ licsennitivity tn the significance

pof laws and to the plssihility of

injustice‘in a fery complex society. Cohen suggests that Thoreau

places himself above the law and’

becomes a rebel. But Thoreau is

more Utopian than revolutionary

and would just'as soon have no in-7

‘volvement in government at all.

Yet the spirit of his act mioht best be embodied by the following statement from his essay, "Put to speak practically, and as a cit— izen... I ask for not at once no_ government but atconce a better government. Let every man make known what kind of government would command his respect, and that wills be one’steo toward obtaining it." Because Thoreau did not try any lawful means to alter governrent

' pbdicy before resorting to civil

‘dieobedience it would be diffie cult to justify his actions.' Despite this, one cannot help but 7 feel an affinity to the senSitivity and conviction that animated his

The world would profit‘

'greatly if people in this sense were more thoroughly Thoreau.

Dan Gallant‘,