There is no pre-requisite for practicing nonviolent resistance. The use of this terminology, propagated by Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. King, has never been required for the employment of peaceful strategies of opposing injustice, nor has a lifelong allegiance to the practice.
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The Salt Satyagraha
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, famously known as Mahatma (great-souled) Gandhi, is often credited as the leader of India’s independence movement and the father of nonviolence. The Salt Satyagraha, led by Gandhi, is subsequently recognized as the turning point in the Indian independence movement and the moment at which Gandhi’s practice of civil disobedience gained popularity.
Sit-Ins to Stand Up
The 1960s in the U.S. are often characterized by the Kennedy assassination, the Vietnam War, the Cold War and, of course, the Civil Rights Movement. The early ‘60s were a time when Jim Crow laws were still around and people all across the nation were protesting in various ways.
Do or Die: The Quit India Movement of 1942
In August 1942, Gandhi famously proclaimed the words “We shall either free India or die in the attempt, we shall not live to see the perpetuation of our slavery.”
A Pinch of Salt and the One of the Largest Nonviolence Movements in India: The Salt March of 1930
The Salt March was one of the most famous early acts of civil disobedience, led by nonviolence leader Mahatma Gandhi as part of India’s protest to gain freedom from the British. In 1882, the British government implemented the Salt Act which prohibited Indians from collecting or selling salt, forcing them to buy salt from the British instead.
Vietnam War Protests at UW-Madison
The Vietnam War, fought between 1955-1975, drew attention across the U.S. It was one of the most highly protested wars in history, especially at UW-Madison. A notable protest at UW occurred in April of 1965 with faculty teaching over 1,500 students about the conflict outside of an academic building.