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An Unjust Law Is No Law At All
An unjust law is no law at all () is an expression in support of natural law, acknowledging that authority is not legitimate unless it is good and right. It has become a standard legal maxim around the world. This view is strongly associated with natural law theorists, including John Finnis and Lon Fuller. History Throughout history, philosophical and religious writers have often objected to unjust laws. For example, in Isaiah 10: In the fourth century AD, Augustine of Hippo said "for I think a law that is not just, is not actually a law" ("''nam mihi lex esse non videtur, quae justa non fuerit''"). He wrote this when discussing why evil exists; his conclusion was that it is ultimately a problem caused by people departing from good or just behavior. Thomas Aquinas exhaustively examines the legitimacy of man-made laws and whether they should be obeyed, in Summa Theologica. He asks "do man-made laws have to be obeyed?" His answer is no; a law only need to be obeyed if it is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Natural Law
Natural law (, ) is a Philosophy, philosophical and legal theory that posits the existence of a set of inherent laws derived from nature and universal moral principles, which are discoverable through reason. In ethics, natural law theory asserts that certain rights and moral values are inherent in human nature and can be understood universally, independent of enacted laws or societal norms. In jurisprudence, natural law—sometimes referred to as iusnaturalism or jusnaturalism, but not to be confused with what is called simply ''naturalism'' in legal philosophy—holds that there are objective legal standards based on morality that underlie and inform the creation, interpretation, and application of human-made laws. This contrasts with ''positive law'' (as in legal positivism), which emphasizes that laws are rules created by human authorities and are not necessarily connected to moral principles. Natural law can refer to "theories of ethics, theories of politics, theories of civil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau (born David Henry Thoreau; July 12, 1817May 6, 1862) was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher. A leading Transcendentalism, transcendentalist, he is best known for his book ''Walden'', a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay "Civil Disobedience (Thoreau), Civil Disobedience" (originally published as "Resistance to Civil Government"), an argument in favor of citizen disobedience against an unjust state. Thoreau's books, articles, essays, journals, and poetry amount to more than 20 volumes. Among his lasting contributions are his nature writing, writings on natural history and philosophy, in which he anticipated the methods and findings of ecology and environmental history, two sources of modern-day environmentalism. His literary language, literary style interweaves close observation of nature, personal experience, pointed rhetoric, symbolic meanings, and historical lore, while displaying a poetic sensibility, ph ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kenneth Einar Himma
Kenneth Einar Himma is an American philosopher, author, lawyer, academic and lecturer. Born in Seattle, Himma earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Illinois in 1985, his master's from the University of California in 1987, and his doctorate of law from the University of Washington School of Law in 1990, before receiving his PhD in 2001 from the University of Washington for his thesis, "The Status of Legal Principles".Curriculum Vitae: Kenneth Einar Himma at the University of Washington School of Law. Retrieved 9 April 2017. Himma specialises in , |
History Of Human Rights
While belief in the sanctity of human life has ancient precedents in many religions of the world, the foundations of modern human rights began during the era of renaissance humanism in the early modern period. The European wars of religion and the civil wars of seventeenth-century Kingdom of England gave rise to the philosophy of liberalism and belief in natural rights became a central concern of European intellectual culture during the eighteenth-century Age of Enlightenment. Ideas of natural rights, which had a basis in natural law, lay at the core of the American and French Revolutions which occurred toward the end of that century, but the idea of human rights came about later. Democratic evolution through the nineteenth century paved the way for the advent of universal suffrage in the twentieth century. Two world wars led to the creation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The post-war era saw movements arising from specific groups experiencing a shortfall in their ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ṛta
In the Historical Vedic religion, Vedic religion, ''Ṛta'' (International Phonetic Alphabet, /ɹ̩t̪ɐ/; Sanskrit ' "order, rhythm, rule; truth; logos") is the principle of natural order which regulates and coordinates the operation of the universe and everything within it. In the hymns of the Vedas, ''Ṛta'' is described as that which is ultimately responsible for the proper functioning of the natural, moral and sacrificial orders. Conceptually, it is closely allied to the injunctions and ordinances thought to uphold it, collectively referred to as ''Dharma'', and the action of the individual in relation to those ordinances, referred to as ''Karma'' – two terms which eventually eclipsed ''Ṛta'' in importance as signifying natural, religious and moral order in later Hinduism. Sanskrit scholar Maurice Bloomfield referred to ''Ṛta'' as "one of the most important religious conceptions of the Rigveda", going on to note that, "from the point of view of the history of religiou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indian Philosophy
Indian philosophy consists of philosophical traditions of the Indian subcontinent. The philosophies are often called darśana meaning, "to see" or "looking at." Ānvīkṣikī means “critical inquiry” or “investigation." Unlike darśana, ānvīkṣikī was used to refer to Indian philosophies by classical Indian philosophers, such as Chanakya in the Arthashastra, Arthaśāstra. A traditional Hindu classification divides āstika and nāstika schools of philosophy, depending on one of three alternate criteria: whether it believes the Vedas as a valid source of knowledge; whether the school believes in the premises of Brahman and Atman (Hinduism), Atman; and whether the school believes in afterlife and Deva (Hinduism), Devas. (though there are exceptions to the latter two: Mimamsa and Samkhya respectively). There are six major (āstika) schools of Hindu philosophy, Vedic philosophy—Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Samkhya, Yoga (philosophy), Yoga, Mīmāṃsā and Vedanta—and five ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Civil Disobedience
Civil disobedience is the active and professed refusal of a citizenship, citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders, or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be called "civil". Hence, civil disobedience is sometimes equated with peaceful protests or nonviolent resistance. Henry David Thoreau's essay ''Resistance to Civil Government'', first published in 1849 and then published posthumously in 1866 as ''Civil Disobedience (Thoreau), Civil Disobedience'', popularized the term in the US, although the concept itself was practiced long before this work. Various forms of civil disobedience have been used by prominent activists, such as Women's suffrage in the United States, American women's suffrage leader Susan B. Anthony in the late 19th century, Egyptian nationalist Saad Zaghloul during the 1910s, and Indian nationalist Mahatma Gandhi in 1920s British Raj, British India as part of his leadership of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jim Crow Laws
The Jim Crow laws were U.S. state, state and local laws introduced in the Southern United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that enforced Racial segregation in the United States, racial segregation, "Jim Crow (character), Jim Crow" being a pejorative term for an African American. The last of the Jim Crow laws were generally overturned Voting Rights Act of 1965, in 1965. Formal and informal racial segregation policies were present in other areas of the United States as well, even as several states outside the South had banned discrimination in public accommodations and voting. Southern laws were enacted by white-dominated state legislatures (Redeemers) to disenfranchise and remove political and economic gains made by African Americans during the Reconstruction era. Such continuing racial segregation was also supported by the successful Lily-white movement. In practice, Jim Crow laws mandated racial segregation in all public facilities in the states of the for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Letter From Birmingham Jail
The "Letter from Birmingham Jail", also known as the "Letter from Birmingham City Jail" and "The Negro Is Your Brother", is an open letter written on April 16, 1963, by Martin Luther King Jr. It says that people have a moral responsibility to break unjust laws and to take direct action rather than waiting potentially forever for justice to come through the courts. Responding to being referred to as an "outsider", King writes: "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." The letter, written in response to "A Call for Unity" during the 1963 Birmingham campaign, was widely published, and became an important text for the civil rights movement in the United States. The letter has been described as "one of the most important historical documents penned by a modern political prisoner", and is considered a classic document of civil disobedience. Background Birmingham, Alabama, was known for its intense segregation and attempts by some residents to combat said racism during ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Martin Luther King Jr
Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968) was an American Baptist minister, civil and political rights, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights movement from 1955 until Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., his assassination in 1968. He advanced civil rights for people of color in the United States through the use of nonviolent resistance and nonviolent civil disobedience against Jim Crow laws and other forms of legalized discrimination in the United States, discrimination. A Black church leader, King participated in and led marches for the right to vote, Desegregation in the United States, desegregation, labor rights, and other civil rights. He oversaw the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott and became the first president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). As president of the SCLC, he led the unsuccessful Albany Movement in Albany, Georgia, and helped organize nonviol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Civil Disobedience (Thoreau)
"Resistance to Civil Government", also called "On the Duty of Civil Disobedience" or "Civil Disobedience", is an essay by American transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau, first published in 1849. In it, Thoreau argues that individuals should prioritize their conscience over compliance with unjust laws, asserting that passive submission to government authority enables injustice. Thoreau was motivated by his opposition to slavery and the Mexican–American War (1846–1848), which he viewed as morally and politically objectionable. The essay has had a significant impact on political thought and activism, influencing figures such as Mahatma Gandhi, who adopted its principles in the struggle for Indian independence, and Martin Luther King Jr., who cited it as a key influence during the American civil rights movement. Its themes of individual responsibility and resistance to injustice have made it a foundational text in the philosophy of nonviolent protest and civil di ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Legitimacy (political)
In political science, legitimacy is a concept which turns brute force into power. The Rights, right and acceptance of an authority, usually a governing law or a regime, at least formally, are impossible to be built on one's brute force, or to coerce people and force them to identify with a given group. Whereas ''authority'' denotes a specific position in an established government, the term ''legitimacy'' denotes a system of government—wherein ''government'' denotes "sphere of influence". An authority viewed as legitimate often has the right and justification to exercise Power (social and political), power. Political legitimacy is considered a basic condition for governing body, governing, without which a government will suffer legislative deadlock(s) and collapse. In political systems where this is not the case, unpopular regimes survive because they are considered legitimate by a small, influential elite.Dahl, Robert A. ''Polyarchy: Participation and Opposition'' (pp. 124–188) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
