Civil Disobedience
Henry David Thoreau, who was a conscientious objector to paying taxes which supported war, wrote the stirring essay Civil Disobedience, which had a profound impact on the world. It has grown with the times, and is just as pertinent today.
Civil Disobedience is a dissertation which proposes a method for social reform, whereby the activists involved endeavor to bring about direct action without stepping down morally or using violence. Thoreau’s work influenced Mohandas Gandhi, who developed the idea of Satyagraha (holding to truth) which led to the India’s independence from its British occupation.
Thoreau’s essay transcends the time he wrote it, during the 1800’s. Since its original publication, people such as Martin Luther King, Jr. have been utilizing its principles. While perusing the news, I found that just a few days ago, on September 19th, President Bush was addressing the U.N. in the General Assembly building. More than one thousand people were outside, protesting his foreign policy in a peaceful manner.
Their indictment of President Bush stated: “We have come to the United Nations today to engage in non-violent civil disobedience. We demand the war on Iraq end immediately. We oppose any attack on Iran. We declare to the world that President George W. Bush has been found guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity. He does not speak for us. These crimes must come to a halt. Demonstrators included Iraq veterans and former U.S. officials, among others.
As the Not in Our Name Statement of Conscience (Jan. 2005) said: 'It is our responsibility to stop the Bush regime from carrying out this disastrous course. We believe history will judge us sharply should we fail to act decisively.” Sixteen of the protestors were arrested for blocking the intersecting streets in front of the building.
According to Thoreau, withdrawing (at the very least) patronage from such institutions which you find to be immoral is a de facto method which surpasses the idle talk most people engage in. “I do not hesitate to say, that those who call themselves abolitionists should at once effectually withdraw their support, both in person and property, from the government of Massachusetts, and not wait till they constitute a majority of one, before they suffer the right to prevail through them” (Thoreau 8).
In the short story, Repent Harlequin! Said the Ticktockman, the harlequin is a bona fide adherent of Thoreau who throws the Orwellian system off balance by his pranks and anarchistic idealism. Where Thoreau is more serious and austere, the Harlequin takes the jester’s approach. The resulting social change is the same, however. In a society where technology and timeliness has all but revoked humanity, the Harlequin thumbs his nose at the institution which attempts to rob him of his autonomy . To that end, both the Harlequin and Thoreau are ‘free’.
In the beginning of the novella, the narrator says, “But because it was the very world it was, the very world they had allowed it to become.” Bit by bit, or civil liberties are pulled out from under us, under the guise of homeland security or some other dubious term. Both men would be considered ‘enemies of the state’ for their so-called evil deeds.
Bucking this establishment had its consequences, both then and now. For Henry David Thoreau, it meant one night in prison. For the Harlequin, it meant death.
For the rest of the unnamed people involved, they were likened to sheep which are easy prey for the wolves. They were herded to and fro, to pay taxes “Thus, under the name of order and civil government, we are all made at last to pay homage to and support our own meanness” (Thoreau 6).
Or alternately, people are made to rush through life, never really living it, in hopes of sparing a few minutes which would otherwise be shaved off for delay. “And so it goes. And so it goes. And so it goes. And so it goes goes goes goes goes tick tock tick tock tick tock and one day we no longer let time serve us, we serve time and we are slaves of the schedule, worshippers of the sun’s passing, bound into a life predicated on restrictions because the system will not function if we don’t keep the schedule tight” (Ellison 7).
What Thoreau and the Harlequin attempted was what Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. later dubbed ‘creative protest’.
Written in the 1960’s, Ellison’s novella is just as poignant for today’s audiences, who are living in a world where taxation that supports an unjust war is a reality. In addition, our overscheduled lives are at their breaking point, which is clear when you sit down (sit down?!) to take a moment and notice how fast the day goes by, rushing to this job and that appointment. “Why let them order you about? Why let them tell you to hurry and scurry like ants or maggots? Take your time! Saunter a while! Enjoy the sunshine, enjoy the breeze, let life carry you at your own pace! Don’t be slaves of time, it’s a helluva way to die, slowly, by degrees…down with the Ticktockman!” (Ellison 10).
President Bush visited Portland, Oregon this past August, in support of Gordon Smith (Senate). While giving his speech, dissidents where heralded with rubber bullets and pepper spray. So much for civil disobedience? In our reality, we are living, working, and paying taxes to a seriously unjust system in which over 2,706 American military personnel and over 100,000 Iraqi civilians have been killed under false premises. As a side note, we (as taxpayers) have shelled out $318 billion (and counting). Thoreau is undoubtedly turning in his grave over these odious facts. “Do we call this the land of the free? What is it to be free from King George and continue the slaves of King Prejudice? What is it to be born free and not live free?” (Thoreau 87).
As we are ensconced in the computer age, there is an updated form of civil disobedience. It is often called ‘electronic civil disobedience’ or ‘Electronic Disturbance Theater’. It can take place at home, at work, etc. without the physical body ever being at the designated location. In 1994, the Mexican Zapatistas effectively blocked President Zedillo’s web site when more than 8000 people at once sent a manually automated reload request to the site. The virtual sit-in caused the web site to be blocked on and off for the entire day. This idea of creating social change via the internet sparks interest and conversation, not least of all by the authorities, who would presumably have a much more difficult time arresting protestors. The Mexican government did in fact respond, and directed their software to cause individual (users) computers to crash whenever EDT was present on their site. However, the activists are at present researching their own countermeasures.
As evidenced by the examples above, it is clear that Henry David Thoreau’s message has not gone unheard. Although we are in what seems to be a perpetual state of war and unrest, there are always those who are brave enough to speak out (or click the mouse). Without uprising, how can there be revolution? Without revolution, how can we grow? “You can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs” (Ellison 14).
Works Cited
1. Thoreau, Henry David. Civil Disobedience and Other Essays. Dover Publications, New York, 1849.
2. Web article: Protests and Civil Disobedience Mark Bush’s UN Speech. September, 2006. http://indymedia.us/en/2006/09/19526.shtml.
3. Ellison, Harlan. Repent, Harlequin! Said the Ticktockman . (Publishing house unknown 196?).
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