Is an individual ever morally justified in breaking a law?

Breaking the Law

Throughout history many situations have called for noble individuals to break the law to stand up for a particular belief or idea. Two Individuals from the text that have done this successfully are Martin Luther King Jr. and Thomas Jefferson. Today in our society there are hardly any forms of acceptable disobedience to the law without large support groups that can make a change. Choosing to overthrow the government such as Jefferson and the continental congress did or choosing to change racial segregation as King did are two events in which individuals took a stand and broke the law to better human life. Both of which would be hard to do in our society today. Cindy Sheehan is a good example of how hard it is today in our country to break the law and make reform.

Jefferson authored one of the most important documents in American history. In the document, the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson and the other members of the continental congress stated their reasoning to become independent. They opposed King George because he was destructive to their inalienable rights such as life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. This was just cause to change the government in their opinions. What they chose to do was breaking the law and risking their lives for what they believed. This revolution was an acceptable form of breaking the law to the majority of the people, and continued with the results intended.

Martin Luther King Jr. was a civil rights activist who worked hard to overthrow the laws of segregation. King advocated non violent ways of reform such as sit-ins at lunch counters that discriminated against African Americans. Such acts landed him in jail and also put him and many of his ...