Civil Disobedience

     A situation in which calls for civil disobedience would be any issue in which people are fighting to ratify an unfair situation in the name of justice, specifically in the name of discovering truth. Truth is the ultimate goal, and if an institution is inhibiting the truth, then civil disobedience would be an acceptable response. An example of current civil disobedience in the name of discovering truth would be the protests in Hong Kong in order to try and make their government a democracy, as they believe that currently, the communist party is not supporting the people the way they should, and that their policies are not supporting and upholding the truth in the terms the people want it. This directly translates to what Thoreau was discussing in his essay "Civil Disobedience". The text says "Government is at best but an expedient; but most governments are usually, and all governments are sometimes, inexpedient (Thoreau 212)."  This, in relation to the Hong Kong protesters, shows that sometimes government is not as effective as it needs to be, and that the people need to present their distaste. In "Civil Disobedience", Thoreau does not believe in slavery or wars, and so protests as a way to show his disapproval. Similarly, any event that has been fought in the name of upholding the moral/ethical truth has been fought with protest, such as the rebellions of the Amerindians or the peaceful civil rights protests. The text states "However, at the request of the selectmen, I condescended to make some such statement as this in writing:- 'Know all men by these presents, that I, Henry Thoreau, do not wish to be regarded as a member of any incorporated society which I have not joined.' (Thoreau 213)." In this, Thoreau is protesting the decisions of his government, and in doing so, showing civil disobedience. Furthermore, the protesters in Hong Kong show that the people of Hong Kong are seeing past what their society is telling them to believe, and are making their own conclusions. Thoreau says "I saw that, if there was a wall of stone between me and my townsmen, there was a still more difficult one to climb or break through before they could get to be as free as I was (Thoreau 214)." This exemplifies that overall, civil disobedience leads to the discovery of truth. By knowing democracy, and fighting for democracy, the people of Hong Kong are discovering truth and rising above the confines of their government. Civil disobedience is worth fighting for truth, and through that truth, finding the best possible life. Truth is what we want if we commit civil disobedience, and the discovery and embracing of truth is worth the protests and the problems that accompany it.