Henry David Thoreau's Civil Disobedience

If people do not protest, can they righteously call a government unfair? If they protest violently, should any authority listen to them? There must be a middle way. Henry David Thoreau, a great author and pioneer in transcendentalism wrote the essay “Civil Disobedience”, in which he reminds us, “All men recognize the right of revolution;... the right to refuse allegiance to, and to resist, the government, when its tyranny or its inefficiency are great and unendurable.” This is the thin line that we must walk. Civil disobedience has been tested numerous times in history. It brings much-needed change in society. Without civil disobedience, the laws of a region become stagnated and out of touch with the will of people. Leonardo da Vinci once said,
Historically, we can remark on its importance. When the people of India suffered in the cavernous hole of British rule, it was civil disobedience that lifted them out. Mahatma (“Great Soul”) Gandhi saw the apartheid in South Africa and practiced some civil disobedience there. He then went back to India to begin his peaceful movement to end British control. He believed, “An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind.” This line of thinking prevented him from using violence to counter British atrocities, such as the Massacre of Amritsar. The calm Gandhi implemented several non-violent campaigns, including “satyagraha” (meaning firmness for truth) and the home-rule campaign which involved complete boycott of British goods. He led the Salt March to protest excessive British salt taxes and began the “Quit India” movement. The tactic of peaceful resistance was not only effective, but it was the only fruitful route. After years of violent resistance, the Indian people found the weaponry was unsuccessful. It was nonviolence that permitted the Indians to gain their independence on August 15,
He began leading the movement by spearheading the first large scale African American demonstration, the bus boycott, which was instigated by Rosa Parks and her famous act of civil disobedience. Its success, with the Supreme Court ruling that the bus segregation was unconstitutional, elevated King’s role. He went on to lead the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and took many ideas from Gandhi. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964 for his work. Arrested more than 20 times, he embodied what it meant to break the law and pay the price, repeatedly, until your triumph irrevocably alters the world. “Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that,” he preaches, and we validate. More recent events were also approached in this manner. The recent fight for marriage equality was not waged with bullets, but with flags, marches, and determination. The protesters quietly withstood imprisonment, social stigma, and more for their cause. Finally, the movement made its way through the Supreme Court, which ruled in favor (with a 5-4 vote) on June 26, 2015. However, if violence had been used, it is unlikely that the same could be