Register for "Civil Disobedience in America"

This seminar examines the controversial topic of civil disobedience. Here we will consider whether civil disobedience could be an appropriate response to unjust laws in a liberal democracy. We begin by looking at the foundations of government set forth in the writings of John Locke and the Declaration of Independence. Our examination of this topic will then turn to two famous opposing sets of ideas on civil disobedience: 1) Lincoln versus Thoreau and 2) Martin Luther King versus Malcolm X. By comparing their respective arguments, our aim is to consider whether civil disobedience is compatible with the principles of government as defined by the Declaration of Independence.

This colloquium will be conducted using only primary source documents, many of which will come from TAH’s published Documents Collections. All attendees will receive a Letter of Attendance at the end of the seminar. Registrants will be sent WebEx login credentials before each session.