Impact Of Gandhi On Civil Disobedience

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Throughout his life Mahatma Gandhi transformed a social movement during British Imperialism. He enforced the ideas of non-violent, passive resistance and civil disobedience by meeting with politicians, fasting and launching campaigns to protest in order to regain rightful ownership of Indian self-government. Mahatma Gandhi once said that, “ Nonviolence is the greatest force at the disposal of mankind. It is mightier than the mightiest weapon of destruction devised by the ingenuity of a man.” This quote is important because it shows how Gandhi encouraged non-violent acts. For instance, On March 2, 1930, Gandhi wrote a letter to Viceroy Lord Irwin . Beginning with “Dear Friend,” Gandhi went on to explain why he viewed British rule as a “curse” and outlined some of the more flagrant abuses of the administration.He added that he wished "to convert the British people to nonviolence and thus make them see the wrong they have done to India." On march 12, 1930 the British government enacted a tax on salt sold in India. The viceroy responded to Gandhi’s letter, but offered no concessions. It was time to prepare for the Salt March. The salt March was a non-violent protest against that tax. Gandhi was protesting against British rule because the tax was going straight to great Britain. It was Gandhi’s way to instill spirit into the fight for independence. They were boycotting salt because he wanted to make their own salt so that they would not have to pay taxes on it. He influenced more than 40,000 people to protest. Gandhi urged civil disobedience. …show more content…
Civil disobedience refusing to obey a law in hopes of influencing the government to change that law. He was kept in prison for nearly two years. While in jail, Gandhi read the essay “Civil Disobedience” by Henry David Thoreau, a 19th-century American writer, and adopted the term “civil disobedience” to describe his strategy of non-violently refusing to cooperate with injustice. Following his release, he continued to protest the registration law by supporting labor strikes and organizing a massive non-violent march. Gandhi led the movement for independence in India by using nonviolent civil disobedience. Mahatma Gandhi undertook 17 fasts during india’s freedom. Fasting was a weapon used by Gandhi as a part of his philosophy of nonviolence. After his return to India in January 1932, Gandhi wasted no time beginning another civil disobedience campaign, for which he was jailed yet again. Eight months later, Gandhi announced he was beginning a “fast unto death” in order to protest British support of a new Indian constitution, which gave …show more content…
Although by itself it failed to bring Indian independence, it seriously undermined British authority and united India’s population in a movement for independence under the leadership of the Indian National Congress. Gandhi was a unifying force in a fictionalised nation. In World War II Britain called for Indian men to fight for them, but Gandhi asked for independence in exchange and the British put the entire Indian National Congress in jail. Indian soldiers fought anyway, but the war made Britain even weaker, and India's fighting abilities stronger. After the war, Britain tried to keep control of India and its money by promising more rights for Indians, but more and more Indians participated in the huge non-violent demonstrations Gandhi led to end the hated salt tax and pressure Britain for full independence. Finally, India gained its liberty and became a free country at midnight between August 14 and August 15,

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