As Ricky Birdsong was walking with his son and his daughter, he was shot by a white gunman in Evanston. The white man who shot him also shot many others, including a fifteen year old boy. Ricky Birdsong was killed in this tragedy. Although his children were not hurt, they saw their father murdered. His daughter voiced, “To come together just for common humanity means a lot, because the opposite of that is what took away my dad.” In response, his wife, Sherialyn Byrdsong, started the Ricky Byrdsong Memorial Race Against Hate as a protest against racism and hate. Everyday, there are incidents on the news of people being denied civil and human rights. Hate around the world is growing and this run shows the commitment people show to end racism
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First, fighting causes people to lose their lives. In 2012, Egyptians demonstrated against the government after the president announced that he had full power. There was a large clash between the protesters and dozens of people were killed and hundreds were injured. The idea to protest is logical, but people should not die from violence from having conflicting ideas. Also, violence fails to bring about a change to help create equal rights. For example, in Venezuela, people protested in April 2017 to re-establish an elected government with a powerful National Assembly and for the government to allow humanitarian aid into the country. In response, the government did not change, and instead Venezuelan official sources report that people participate in pro-government rallies, where some sing and dance “in defense of peace”. Tensions rose and a seventeen year old boy was killed, but the rally did not change anything. On the other hand, using nonviolent methods can cause progress to be made. Erica Chenoweth, a political scientist, collected data on violent and nonviolent political campaigns since 1900, and she found that nonviolence succeeds 73% of the time, while violence was successful 33% of the time. Using nonviolence allows other people to perceive the issue; they will then be more likely to act, rather than if they are afraid or acting defensively from the brutality. Violence should only be a last resort because …show more content…
First, people need to protest and fight against inequalities. All governments should allow for equal rights and people should rally together and show their feelings against discrimination, as long as the protests are kept nonviolent. Nonviolent protests can show how a collection of people is powerful, because many nonviolent protests bring about change or awareness of an issue. Gandhi observed, “Nonviolence is an intensely active force when properly understood and used.” In 1930, Gandhi walked 240 miles with many supporters after Britain commanded no Indian could collect or sell salt in the country. The peaceful protesters walked to the Arabian Sea to collect a handful of salt. Seventeen years later, India gained independence from Britain. Also, each individual needs to accept others and believe in achieving a more advanced society where all people can have rights. Society needs to reform ideas and have a positive view of people. Stereotypes allow for inequalities. People can start by being kind to others and speaking out against inequalities and discrimination. Often, people act on stereotypes without even realizing it. Humans need to show a conscience effort to treat others with respect. Although people do not need to love all others, people need to support the effort to let others have the opportunity of fairness. Then, if more individuals show their
First, fighting causes people to lose their lives. In 2012, Egyptians demonstrated against the government after the president announced that he had full power. There was a large clash between the protesters and dozens of people were killed and hundreds were injured. The idea to protest is logical, but people should not die from violence from having conflicting ideas. Also, violence fails to bring about a change to help create equal rights. For example, in Venezuela, people protested in April 2017 to re-establish an elected government with a powerful National Assembly and for the government to allow humanitarian aid into the country. In response, the government did not change, and instead Venezuelan official sources report that people participate in pro-government rallies, where some sing and dance “in defense of peace”. Tensions rose and a seventeen year old boy was killed, but the rally did not change anything. On the other hand, using nonviolent methods can cause progress to be made. Erica Chenoweth, a political scientist, collected data on violent and nonviolent political campaigns since 1900, and she found that nonviolence succeeds 73% of the time, while violence was successful 33% of the time. Using nonviolence allows other people to perceive the issue; they will then be more likely to act, rather than if they are afraid or acting defensively from the brutality. Violence should only be a last resort because …show more content…
First, people need to protest and fight against inequalities. All governments should allow for equal rights and people should rally together and show their feelings against discrimination, as long as the protests are kept nonviolent. Nonviolent protests can show how a collection of people is powerful, because many nonviolent protests bring about change or awareness of an issue. Gandhi observed, “Nonviolence is an intensely active force when properly understood and used.” In 1930, Gandhi walked 240 miles with many supporters after Britain commanded no Indian could collect or sell salt in the country. The peaceful protesters walked to the Arabian Sea to collect a handful of salt. Seventeen years later, India gained independence from Britain. Also, each individual needs to accept others and believe in achieving a more advanced society where all people can have rights. Society needs to reform ideas and have a positive view of people. Stereotypes allow for inequalities. People can start by being kind to others and speaking out against inequalities and discrimination. Often, people act on stereotypes without even realizing it. Humans need to show a conscience effort to treat others with respect. Although people do not need to love all others, people need to support the effort to let others have the opportunity of fairness. Then, if more individuals show their