Violence has been used as a way to “solve” issues for a long time. Back in the day when integration was being fought for, segregationist would use violence in hopes to get rid of the possibility of being equal with other races. Although, it didn’t work out for them. See violence is a way for issues to be swept under a rug, it doesn't truly solve the issue at hand it’s just left there in hopes that it will be forgotten. It is a way for people to not have to deal with the issue face on, either because they are scared to or because they don’t exactly know how to go by doing it. Some may argue and say that WWI or WWII could not have been dealt with without using violence, and I would have to agree with them. There are some qualifiers when it comes to not using violence to solve problems.I believe that violence is mostly wrong and should not be used as a first response, but if needed it should be used as self defense.
Malcolm X was a human rights activist, but he was unlike the usual human rights activist, he believed that violence was necessary in the form of an eye for an eye. He believed if they hurt you, you hurt them back. If they kill one of your kind, you kill one of their kind. Malcolm X once said, “ I don’t advocate violence; but if a man steps on my toes, I’ll step on his.” He also once said, “I am for violence if non-violence means we continue postponing a solution to the American black man's problem just to avoid violence.” To him, violence was a way for blacks to rightfully take what they should already have, freedom and equality. I agree with Malcolm X, they fought back after being abused and enslaved for years, that is when I believe that violence is the most acceptable.
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“Normal” human rights activists like Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi believed that nonviolence was the key to peacefulness. King once said, “Nonviolence is a powerful and just weapon, which cuts without wounding and ennobles the man who wields it. It is a sword that heals”, and Gandhi once said, “Nonviolence is not to be used ever as the shield of the coward. It is the weapon of the brave.” Martin Luther King took inspiration from the beliefs of Gandhi on how nonviolence is the most powerful weapon in the world, and they used peaceful marches and nonviolent protests to prove it. Although, most peaceful marches and nonviolent protests led to violent acts, which was observed by author Benjamin Ginsberg.
In an article called Why Violence Works, Benjamin Ginsberg states, “It’s true that political leaders espousing nonviolence in those cases - Martin Luther King Jr., Vaclav Havel, and Mahatma Gandhi - played important roles. However, the tactics - strikes, boycotts, demonstrations - that leaders like King and Gandhi used were far from nonviolent.” He then begins to explain how their nonviolent responses were meant to provoke violent responses from segregationists in hopes to gain sympathy from the crowd. That is another reason why I most agree with Malcolm X, he straight up said that he wanted people to be ready to fight back and take back what should be theirs, while King and Gandhi just wanted to gain sympathy and take the easy way.
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