Resistance Movements (Research Paper Sample)

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Resistance Movements
A resistance movement is an organized activity by a part of the civil population of a country to resist a government that has been established lawfully. The activities engaged in by this section of the population leads to a disruption of the stability and civil order of the country. Resistance can employ the use of the armed forces or can be peaceful and non-violent. However, in some cases like the case of Norway during the Second World War, both violent and non-violent methods can be utilized. The connection between religion, violence, and domination has been present in the society since the times of old human civilizations. Culture and religion have been utilized as a form of resistance to domination. For instance, the Middle East is marked by chaos which occurs as a result of the military, economic and political dominance. In most of the nations, end of colonization marked the end of the imperial rule. Nevertheless, the Arab countries are still faced with imperial threats. In these countries, the Western countries in collaboration with Israel impose policies on these nations. However, some people have tried to oppose these activities through speaking out the truth. Aside from this, religion was used in Nigeria to gather control of the Kano. This was done by Marwa was a preacher who read the Quran. He recruited followers who were educated in the makarantar allo system. Through the recruitment process, Marwa led to the formation of the Muslim Brother that became the Islamic movement in the region which posed threats to the Shagari government.
On the other hand, Christianity is a form of resistance that was established as a way of resisting the Roman imperial domination system. Thus, Augustus Caesar established the Roman Empire and built its economic ties. This leader was praised for making the empire strong and ensuring its peace. However, during the reign of Herod and his son Herod Antipas, the Jewish people were oppressed, exploited, enslaved, devastated and massacred. Through the Jesus Movement, the Jews held to it that God was among them even when they were going through harsh treatment. Through the Jesus Movement, the cultural and the religious beliefs of the Jewish people helped them to struggle against the oppression and the injustices committed to them by the Roman leaders.
On the other hand, culture has also been employed as a form of resistance. For instance, when the Africans were enslaved by the whites, they preserved their rituals, language, religion, art and other practices. Thus, they resisted change and maintained their sense of identity. However, culture and religion can be oppressive. In most of the Middle East countries like Palestine and Saudi Arabia, women have been oppressed for long due to culture and Islam. Women have not been able to enjoy their rights. For instance, in Palestine women were labeled in the politically sphere. They suffered social injustices and could not be able to access some of the opportunities. This prompted the women to engage in a resistance movement to address issues affecting them. With the advancement in technology, the social media and YouTube have become avenues for resistance movements. In Egypt, the internet was used to organize and inspire the citizens to go on the streets in 2011. Moreover, it was used to document events that could not be accessible to by the authorities. The internet especially the use of Twitter was used to communicate to the world about what was happening in the country.Social media thus Twitter and Facebook were also employed into usage during the Bahrain uprising. The people used the social media to express the hegemonic forces that were geared towards opposing political change in the country. Both the activists and the government employed the use of social media to keep up with what was happening in the country.
In the Philippines, when the impeachment trial of the then president named Joseph Estrada, messages that carried evidence against the president were sent to millions of people. This was alarming to the legislators who allowed the evidence to be presented. The president resigned due to this evidence. Thus, social media helped to force a leader out of office. In Moldova, activists used Livejournal which is an electronic diary social network, Facebook and Twitter to organize protests. Moreover, the internet was used as a tool to avail to the world information with regard to what was happening in the country. Even though the protests did no result into changes in the political sphere, the world came to comprehend and notice a small country situated in the remote parts. In Iran, in 2009, Neda Agha-Soltan along with some friends was headed for Tehran to participate in an anti-governmental protest. When she got out of the car while stuck in traffic, she was shot. Someone captured the incident via a cell phone and posted it on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. This captured the attention of the word and made headline on CNN and the New York Times.
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