Satyagraha is the name of a nonviolent resistance movement involving protests that are not passive, but rather an active “clinging to the truth” (“Satyagraha,” para 1). Gandhi once described it as “Truth (Satya) implies Love, and Firmness (Agraha) engenders and therefore serves as a synonym for force … that is to say, the Force which is born of Truth and Love or Non-violence” (Graham, para 4). Examples of Gandhi’s use of Satyagraha to resist British imperial rule include a boycott of British goods in the 1920s, and more notably, the Salt March in 1930. The Salt March, initiated after the British imposed a salt tax, was a 200 mile journey to the seashore where, upon arrival, Gandhi boiled seawater to extract the salt, defying the British and new salt tax (Nationalism in India, slides 13 – 14; Goff et al, 208).
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These protests are a good current example of Satyagraha – a firm and loving “clinging to the truth” (“Satyagraha,” para 1).
It appears to me that Satyagraha is an effective means of protest. The textbook states that despite the many arrests, including Gandhi’s, that resulted from the Salt March, the government eventually compromised and released those that were arrested, reduced the salt tax, and lifted some restrictive laws (Goff et al,
These protests are a good current example of Satyagraha – a firm and loving “clinging to the truth” (“Satyagraha,” para 1).
It appears to me that Satyagraha is an effective means of protest. The textbook states that despite the many arrests, including Gandhi’s, that resulted from the Salt March, the government eventually compromised and released those that were arrested, reduced the salt tax, and lifted some restrictive laws (Goff et al,