NCJ Number
121683
Editor(s)
P Harris
Date Published
1989
Length
296 pages
Annotation
These 13 papers examine the nature and moral justification of civil disobedience and its practical and political implications, with emphasis on its use in the United States during the 1960's.
Abstract
The discussions emphasize that the term has been used in varying ways. Individual papers focus on the role of civil disobedience in efforts to rectify racial discrimination, resist the military draft, and other areas and variously argue that it is irrelevant to today's political problems and that it is a crucial tool in producing change faster than amendments but without serious disorder or revolution. Other papers consider the distinction between civil disobedience and conscientious refusal, the changes over time in the concept and justifications for civil disobedience, the differences between direct and indirect resistance, and moral and legal arguments regarding civil disobedience. Chapter reference notes, index, and 127 references.