Thoreau and Emerson American Civil Disobedience Defined.

Thoreau and Emerson

American Civil Disobedience Defined

The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it.

• Under a government which imprisons any unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison.

• Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)

It’s not civil disobedience if you’re not willing to pay the price of your actions.

» Henry David Thoreau was a U.S. thinker, essayist, and naturalist, born in Concord, Mass. Thoreau graduated from Harvard University and taught school for several years before deciding to become a poet of nature. In Concord, he came under the influence of R. W. Emerson and began to publish his essays. In the years 1845-47, to demonstrate how satisfying a simple life could be, he lived in a hut beside Concord's Walden Pond; essays recording his daily life were assembled for his masterwork, Walden (1854).

» He reflected on a night he spent in jail protesting the Mexican-American War in the essay "Civil Disobedience" (1849), which would later influence Mohatmas Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. In later years he became a dedicated abolitionist.

» After his death his collected writings were published in 20 volumes, and further writings have continued to appear in print.

Unjust laws exist

• Shall we be content to obey them, or shall we endeavor to amend them, and obey them until we have succeeded, or shall we transgress them at once . . . To think that, if we should resist, the remedy would be worse than the evil. But it is the fault of the government itself that the remedy is worse than the evil . . . Why does it not encourage its citizens to be on the alert to point out its faults, and do better . . .?

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882)

• I hate quotations. Tell me what you know.

non-conformity

• Emerson spoke about his views on the mystical harmonies of man and nature, the essential perfectibility of the human spirit, the unity of the human soul with the divine Over-Soul, and the values of non-conformity. This is, in part, transcendentalism.

• What is conformity?• What is non-conformity?

A champion

• A committed Abolitionist, a champion of the hounded Native Americans, a tireless crusader for peace and social justice, a supporter of educational reform, as well as a selfless champion of other creative geniuses around him like Thoreau and Louisa May Alcott.

From THE TRANSCENDENTALIST (1841)

• [The Transcendentalist] "believes in miracles, in the perpetual openness of the human mind to new influx of light and power; he believes in inspiration, and in ecstasy."

From SELF-RELIANCE (1841)

"Whosoever would be a man, must be a nonconformist . . .

A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds . . .

To be great is to be misunderstood."

First Amendment responsibility

• “. . . going to war does not abrogate freedom of conscience, thought and speech. In the midst of World War II, the Supreme Court held that compelling kids in public schools to salute the flag and recite the Pledge of Allegiance violated the First Amendment and was therefore unconstitutional. This decision, handed down on Flag Day 1943, was considered then to be a pretty good statement of why we were fighting.” Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr

Question Everything: In a democracy the citizens must debate before sending their young people into danger.

• Theodore Roosevelt said in 1918 during the First World War, "To announce that there must be no criticism of the president... is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public."

George Wallace, governor of Alabama for twenty years:

• Wallace was a four-time candidate for the presidency of the United States.

• Wallace was an avowed segregationist for much of his life.

Wallace said:

• “In the name of the greatest people that have ever trod this earth, I draw the line in the dust and toss the gauntlet before the feet of tyranny and I say segregation now, segregation tomorrow, and segregation forever.”

• 1963

Just after his successful race for governor of Alabama in 1962:

• Wallace kept a campaign promise to prevent school integration by standing in the schoolhouse door of the University of Alabama before a swarm of reporter and tellevisions news cameras. “That defiant little guy standing there, that pugnacious glaring expression, the chin thrust out – he personified Southern resistance to racial integration.” – Bob Ingram, Montgomery Advertiser

Wallace paid the price for his civil disobedience.

• In 1972 five bullets stopped him and his nationalist aspirations. He campaigned from his wheelchair.

• He later asked for forgiveness from the people he had so insulted.

Legal Consequences of Civil DisobedienceYou should also consult with an attorney so that you understand the possible consequences of whatever nonviolent action you may undertake. The attorney will be able to determine the classification of offenses and advise you whether the act likely to be committed is a disorderly persons offense, misdemeanor or felony, as well as warn you of maximum periods of incarceration and fines. Such classifications and penalties vary from state to state and from municipality to municipality. For example, criminal offenses are usually divided into various "levels." The categorization of crimes will vary from state to state. In New York, for example, there are felonies, misdemeanors and violations. Felonies and misdemeanors are crimes, conviction of which results in a criminal record. Violations are not crimes and are on the same level as moving traffic violations. Felony offenses have a minimum potential incarceration period of at least one year and/or a maximum fine of $5,000, and can include such crimes as grand larceny, serious assault, narcotics sales and homicide. Misdemeanors are less serious crimes, and are punishable by no more than one year incarceration and/or a maximum fine of $1,000. Examples of misdemeanors include petit larceny, resisting arrest, simple assault and some levels of trespass. Violations are punishable by a maximum sentence of 15 days in jail and/or a fine of up to $250, and can include disorderly conduct, harassment and simple trespass. Again, you must ascertain what the law states in your jurisdiction.

Offense Classification Maximum Incarceration & Fine

New York

Disorderly Conduct Violation 15 days/$250

Trespass Violation 15 days/$250

Resisting Arrest Misdemeanor 12 months/$1,000

California

Disorderly Conduct Misdemeanor 90 days/$400

Trespass Misdemeanor 12 months/$1,000

Resisting Arrest Class A Misdemeanor 12 months/$1,000

Pennsylvania

Disorderly Conduct 3rd Degree Misdemeanor 1 year/$2,500

Trespass 3rd Degree Misdemeanor 1 year/$2,500

Resisting Arrest 2d Degree Misdemeanor 2 years/$5,000

Demonstrators or civil disobedients are commonly charged with disorderly conduct, trespass or resisting arrest. Occasionally protestors are charged with more serious crimes which can include assault and riot. Using New York as our example once again, the elements of these offenses can be summarized as follows: Disorderly Conduct:

unreasonable noise, disturbing a lawful assembly, obstructing pedestrian or vehicular traffic, refusing a police order to disperse, or a more general act such as "creating a physically offensive condition by any act which serves no legitimate purpose." Clearly, almost any act can be considered disorderly conduct by a police officer or a judge.

Trespass: knowing presence on property without the permission of the owner.

Resisting Arrest: intentionally attempting to prevent an arrest. Courts have interpreted this to include causing the police to use force to make an arrest, such as when the person arrested goes limp and makes the police carry her away.

Assault: causing another to be in fear of imminent bodily harm or death. In New York, the crime of assault in the second degree (a felony crime) is defined as causing injury to a police officer with the intent of preventing the officer from performing her duties. There are frequent claims that police officers charge this when they injure someone, so as to lay the foundation for their own defense in case the arrestee makes a complaint.

Riot: violent and tumultuous conduct which causes public unrest or alarm.

AbandoningSamih al-Qasim

• I saw her• I saw her in the square• I saw her bleeding in the square• I saw her staggering in the square• I saw her being killed in the square• I saw her . . . I saw her . . .• And when he shouted• Who is her guardian? I denied knowing her• I left her in the square• I left her bleeding in the square• I left her staggering in the square• I left her dying in the square• I left her . . .

Travel Tickets

• On the day you kill me• You’ll find in my pocket• Travel tickets• To peace,• To the fields and the rain,• To people’s conscience.

• Don’t waste the tickets.