Free Essays, Term Papers, Research Papers at Anti Essays

Violent Vs. Nonviolent Revolution
Does it make sense to fight fire with fire? As far back as history goes there has always been a raging fire of societal injustices. Societal injustices occur when one part of society believes that its ways and beliefs are better than another group in society, and they begin to oppress them. The oppressed group can only take a certain amount of cruel imposition forced upon them before finally revolting against their oppressors. When this takes place, a revolution is born. The revolution could either be violent, or nonviolent. Revolutionaries such as Che Guevara and Adolf Hitler chose to fight fire with fire by leading violent, hate driven revolutions. Revolutionaries such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi took peaceful actions such as marches and strikes to fight against the corruption. Nonviolent revolutions lead by Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi didn’t use death as an option in their uprisings. The point of nonviolent revolutions is not to humiliate the opponent, but instead to gain their understanding. The nonviolence in the uprisings of Martin Luther King Jr. was intelligent and his theories had meaning and consistency. Overall, society has benefited more from the peaceful tactics of non-violent revolutions compared to violent revolutions.
Che Guevara was a Latin American revolutionary who believed he could use force of arms to achieve his goals. In 1954, Che met the Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro while in Mexico. Che became part of Fidel Castro’s efforts to overthrow the Batista government in Cuba. He served as a military advisor to Castro and led guerilla troops into battles with the Batista forces. In 1959, Che became in charge of La Cabana Fortress Prison. Bringing negative attention to himself and his revolution, it is estimated that between 156 and 550 people, including women and children, were executed either by Che, himself, or his extra-judicial orders (Biography). "We must say here, what is a...