Can violence,or force, or the threat of threat of force help to lessen Essay

Can violence,or force, or the threat of threat of force help to lessen or eliminate racism - Essay Example But whether the use of such violent means justify and succeed in eliminating racism, is the fundamental question, that is being probed in this paper. I personally feel that such a question cannot be answered in a meaningful and rational manner with a specific ‘yes’ or ‘no’, particularly considering the background: the historical circumstances as well as the present day conflicts; which has evoked such a deliberation. Any rational individual, in my view, would not consent to use of violence as a legitimate means of overcoming racism unless, it is the only means available to defend personal values and it justifies the cause to fight a greater evil. There exists a moral / ethical dilemma regarding the use of force or threat for safeguarding one’s own interest and defending integrity of the suppressed population. Thus, while on one hand we have a considerable section of the society, believing in non violence who would unanimously negate the use of any for m of aggression or dominance to counter suppression and prejudicial behavior, and promote non violent and subtle means as a more favorable and rational action, and yet on the other hand, there are those who claim that violence is justified if it is used to eliminate greater evils. The choice that this question offers, gives rise to contradicting ideologies, which challenges our moral judgment, since theoretically, violence is generally condemned by societies as an illegitimate and irrational action that does not justify any cause, and yet factually, we may find several instances where violence was successfully used to eliminate social evils. For instance, the aggressive revolt led by Nat Turner, a black slave, in the early 1830s against the tyranny of white Americans, in a bid to escape racist laws and reinstate dignity and self empowerment for the blacks, which eventually led to bloodshed