2016: The Year of the Protest

Image+obtained+through+Google+Commons.+

Image obtained through Google Commons.

225 years after the adoption of the Bill of Rights, it seems as though our first amendment rights continue to be tested year after year. The current issue at hand: the right to a peaceful protest.

The United States was proudly formed by a revolution against an unjust government, so the Founding Fathers ensured that the American right to protest the government was secured when they drafted the Constitution and then the additional Bill of Rights.

The first amendment of the Constitution, often considered the most important, immediately secures this ideal. Freedom of speech, petition and public assembly combine to secure a right for Americans to protest. This privilege has been in full effect in 2016 as controversial events plague the country.

The Black Lives Matter movement has been a long time development, established from a series of police brutality cases in which police officers seemed to have targeted people of color. This series of protests is ongoing and continues to make progress towards cracking down on racism in America.

Another prevalent protest began in North Dakota, as Native American tribes protested the development of a pipeline that was set to reach across four midwestern states. In fear of tainted drinking water, the Standing Rock Sioux tribe stood up against the establishment of the pipeline and efforts to stop the construction are ongoing, though on Dec 4th the protesters successfully won approval of a reroute to the pipeline.

The most expansive protest of the year came when president-elect Donald Trump was elected based on Electoral College despite losing the popular vote. The election outcome provoked protests across the country, including some instances that resulted in violence or discrimination on both sides of the fight. The most substantial protest came from Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein who raised funds for an election recount in three key states.

Most Americans would agree that the right to protest is secure as long as it is safe and peaceful. The problem is, sometimes it can be difficult to draw the exact line between peaceful protest and protests that become violent.

For example, the Black Lives Matter protest is a powerful movement standing for a moral cause and preaching actions of peace and never condoning violence. Certain individuals, however, take matters into their own hands and, while they may claim to represent the movement, they actually just hold extremist views and resort to violence to send their message. These figures, however, are individuals and should not be grouped with the well-intentioned movement.

The right to speak out against a government is an important aspect of our country, and restricting it based on the actions of a few extremist actions would be unethical and immoral. Punishment should be served to individuals who choose to take the law into their own hands, but their personal attempt to establish association with an otherwise peaceful movement should not result in a punishment for the protest as a whole.

Some of America’s proudest moments have come from protest, and even in history there have been extremists who thought their message was above the law. Law enforcement has and always will crack down on these criminals, but to take out these punishments on a movement that has intentions of improving the country would be unfair.

When faced with the question of what to do to deal with this situation, a change in the system does not seem necessary, but rather continued emphasis on what is right and what is wrong. Ensuring that the future of our country utilizes and honors the American right to protest, but also respects the boundaries that go with it is vital. Peaceful protests should always be accepted and encouraged to keep our country’s government in check. The immoral actions of the few should never represent the well-intentioned actions of many.

Editorial Board

Agree – 6

Disagree – 0