From the 1600’s to the present times there has been a rapid increase of human rights. Whether it is for sexes, races, or labourers, the 1600’s to present times seemed to be the time that mankind made a huge push for rights among all people. The ideas that inspired the French Revolution, the increase of human rights for labourers in Britain, and the fight against racism around the world
demonstrated that human rights are gained because the ideas of a few thinkers are able to inspire many people to fight for their rights.
During
the scientific revolution, there were thinkers whose ideas were able to inspire
an entire nation to rebel against their leader and gain there rights and
freedoms. The rebellion was the French Revolution and some of the thinkers who
inspired it were Locke, Rousseau, and Hobbes. All these thinkers had similar
ideas about how the government should take care of its people and about how
everyone should be equal. John Locke believed that a government should be
overthrown if they don’t protect the natural rights of their citizens (the
right to life, liberty, and property)(Haberman). King Louis of France did not respect
these natural laws and this is why the people of France over threw their
government. Another thinker that inspired the French Revolution is Rousseau.
Rousseau believed that people should have the right to get rid of their government(Haberman)
if they feel they are not being treated right. The people of France did feel
this way because the extremely high taxes implemented by King Louis, so they
started the rebellion to get rid of their government. This is how Rousseau’s
ideas inspired the French Revolution.
Finally, Hobbes ideas also inspired the French Rev. Hobbes believed that
there should be a leader, and then everyone underneath him should be equal(Haberman).
This was not the case in late the late 1700’s in France as there were very rich
people living comfortable and then there was very poor people who were taxed
heavily and couldn’t afford to buy bread. People were not happy with the lack
of equality and this is how Hobbes ideas inspired the French Revolution. The
ideas of these three thinkers were able to inspire a revolution that helped
hundreds of thousands of people have more rights. This shows how the ideas of a
few thinkers are able to inspire many to fight for their rights.
Along with the lack of rights that people had in 1780’s France, there was also a huge lack of rights among human laborers working in factories during the Industrial Revolution. The Industrial Revolution was the start of a new manufacturing process. Factories were you used to mass produce products. The workers in these factories had very little rights, they were forced to work long hours, for a very small wage, in unsafe working conditions they resulted in a lot of injuries and deaths(schoolhistory.com) . Children were also being forced to work 16 hour days. People were not aware of the terrible things going on with children in these factories as no one ever talked about it. That is until Michael Sadler found out about it and decided how wrong it was that children were being forced to work in these factories. Sadler launched an investigation into the factories and saw just how bad it was. He then published an article called the Sadler Report. The Sadler Report exposed what was going on inside those factories(Haberman). The article got very popular and people didn’t like the idea of children having to work triple shifts. This is how Sadler inspired the Factory Act. The Factory Act made it so that children between the ages of 13-18 cannot work more than 12 hours a day, cannot work at night, and must get 2 hours of schooling every day at the factory (Haberman). Although the conditions were still pretty bad, Sadler was able to dramatically help them by publishing that article expressing his ideas. This is how the ideas of one man were able to gain rights for thousands of children working in England. Children Working in Factory during Industrial Revolution.
Children working in factories during industrial rev.Racism has been a problem for years in America and other places around the world, as people who were of a different skin colour were often treated poorly and/ or did not have as much rights as people who were white. People were not happy about the lack of rights different races were given but no one really did anything about it. That is until Martin Luther King Jr came around and created a human rights movement for equality between blacks and whites. His ideas for equality inspired hundreds of thousands of people to join his movement. MLK has been quoted saying "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character". His movement was successful, although he was assassinated his ideas ended up gaining equality for African Americans in the USA. Nelson Mandela was another Civil Rights activist but instead of the USA he was standing up for Africans in South Africa. Although the majority of the population of South Africa was black, the country was still controlled by rich white people. Black people were treated poorly in South Africa and Nelson Mandela believed in the equality of all races. He was locked in jail for 30 years because of his beliefs, but he also started a movement and the equality between races in South Africa has been improved. This shows how human rights can be gained because the beliefs of one man will inspire many to fight for rights.
Martin Luther King Jr giving a speech to inspire people to stand up for their rights.
I
believe that in present times it is a lot harder to gain human rights for the
people who are still struggling to be equal. For example, woman in the Middle
East or sweat shop labourers in third world countries who seek equal pay as the
first world countries. It seems that there are a lot more people attempting to
start movements in present times to advocate for rights but it seems little to
know progress is actually made from these movements, for say woman in the
Middle East. I think that the reason for this is because some cultures are more
open for change than others. The Middle East has treated woman that way for
thousands of years which does not make their culture very open to change. The
American culture is very accepting and open to new things (although lots of the
people are not) and this is what allowed them to move past racism and except
all colours of skin to be equal. Same goes for Britain during the Industrial
Revolution, they were able to change their labours laws and make it them better
because there culture is always changing and they are very perceptible to
change. Whereas a place such as Bangladesh doesn’t have the option to change
their labour laws because the factories either can’t afford it, or the workers
have no other choice but to work these terrible jobs because they need the
money. I believe that it is a lot harder to have a successful human rights
movement in present times because a lot of the groups of people who need
equality are either stuck in a very strict religion or are in a situation where
it is impossible to get out of (such as sweat shop workers. If they were paid
higher the jobs wouldn’t be sent over there at all and they would be out of a
job all together). Is it possible that all the human rights changes that can be
made in this world have already been made, and groups will stay the way they
are for ever?
In
conclusion, The French Revolution, the improvements of rights for factory
workers in Britain, and the gain of equality between races in America and South
Africa demonstrate that human rights are gained because the ideas of a few
thinkers inspire many people to fight for their rights.
Sources
Haberman, Arthur, ed. The Modern Age. Toronto: Gage Learning, 1987. Print.
https://www.nelsonmandela.org/content/page/biography
Trevor,
ReplyDeleteyour blog is very well written and I agree with you in that equality in America and in Britain was changed drastically by one or two men's ideas. However, I do believe that there is still much work to be done on the topic of racism in America. Because of this, while I do agree that one man can make a huge impact, I also believe that it takes a community to make a stand.
In recent years, events like Ferguson and the riots in Baltimore, and just the other day Charleston, have proven that racism is still very much alive in the US and that it takes the entire city to revolt against these issues. When you read the headlines and the articles about these recent problems, there is never just one man standing up for rights anymore. Instead, it is an entire enraged community, city or even state. Because of this, I do agree with you that in the past one man has changed things, but I think that now we have adjusted so that many people are advocates and those revolting are strong in numbers as well as ideas.
You asked, "Is it possible that all... the groups will stay the way they are forever?"
This is a great question and I wonder about it as well. Is it possible to create reform in such a set-in-stone culture? Is it possible, somehow, that we can infiltrate and create peace for those who cannot do it for themselves?
I do have hope for many emerging countries like India and China. However, countries like Afghanistan had become quite modern and free, and have since been put back into a dark, religion controlled place. Because of this, I do believe reform is possible, but I am not confident that it will make a lasting impact.
Your blog is well written and organized, and I agree with your ideas and your uncertainties. Great job.
I agree with your opinion on how revolutions are born from the ideas of a few philosophers, and I also agree with your statement on how different cultures are more open and accepting to change. It is fact that the developed world has progressed much further from a human rights standpoint. I believe the main motive for this is religion. Religious traditions are what bind people to certain rules and guidelines, and force them to live constricted by these rules which leads to a grid-lock for progression. For example, countries such as Saudi Arabia follow a Muslim form of government called sharia law which is a form of government derived from the the Qu'ran. This form of government, for women in particular, constricts their freedoms and rights, for instance, many scholars believe that Sharia law encourages men to commit domestic violence, and because it is now their religious obligation, they will. So, I believe religious traditions in some cultures leads to a standstill of moral progress.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with what Trevor is saying about human rights it is truly the push of a few thinkers through time that made a choice to stand up for what they thought was right. At the point when he says, "It seems that there are a lot more people attempting to start movements in present times to advocate for rights but it seems little to know progress is actually made from these movements." It is true I feel mobs and riots start off an impulse most of the people involved are following one single leader and don't have much of there own opinion taking drastic measures to get what that leader feels is right across. The Baltimore Riots were a great example of that, people fighting over the death of black people in a violent way is only gonna cause more problems. Whatever happened to the strategic planned out way of fighting for human rights like MLK. If you look back at any part of history it takes one person to say this is wrong and come up with a thought out plan to get it done.
ReplyDeleteHe also had a great point when he stated that, “The Middle East has treated women that way for thousands of years which does not make their culture very open to change.” People aren’t always willing to change out of the blue even if what they believe may be completely wrong they still go along with it because it's all they know. Human rights has a lot to do with what u have been influenced by where you grew up in your parents beliefs etc. That's why to try and change there opinion is next to impossible cause what does your opinion mean when they have always known something different.
I completely agree with what Trevor is saying about human rights it is truly the push of a few thinkers through time that made a choice to stand up for what they thought was right. At the point when he says, "It seems that there are a lot more people attempting to start movements in present times to advocate for rights but it seems little to know progress is actually made from these movements." It is true I feel mobs and riots start off an impulse most of the people involved are following one single leader and don't have much of there own opinion taking drastic measures to get what that leader feels is right across. The Baltimore Riots were a great example of that, people fighting over the death of black people in a violent way is only gonna cause more problems. Whatever happened to the strategic planned out way of fighting for human rights like MLK. If you look back at any part of history it takes one person to say this is wrong and come up with a thought out plan to get it done.
ReplyDeleteHe also had a great point when he stated that, “The Middle East has treated women that way for thousands of years which does not make their culture very open to change.” People aren’t always willing to change out of the blue even if what they believe may be completely wrong they still go along with it because it's all they know. Human rights has a lot to do with what u have been influenced by where you grew up in your parents beliefs etc. That's why to try and change there opinion is next to impossible cause what does your opinion mean when they have always known something different.