Political Violence
Author: Liam Walker
Is political violence ever effective or justified? This question has influenced revolutions, overthrown authoritarian regimes, and changed the course of human history. While peaceful protest, debate, and dialogue is celebrated in democratic societies, history reminds us that violence has often been seen as the only path to liberation; however, it is critical to distinguish the conditions in which political violence has been proven effective from those in which it causes more harm than good.
The American Revolution is one of the most unique examples of political violence leading to a favorable outcome. For years, colonists demanded representation and personal liberties through peaceful means of petitions, boycotts, and assemblies. For example, the Stamp Act Congress of 1765 brought together delegates from 9 colonies to denounce Britain’s newly passed tax on printed materials, arguing that taxation without representation violated their rights. Tensions would continue to escalate for the next decade, resulting in the Continental Congress appealing directly to King George III for reconciliation and reaffirming loyalty to Britian in hopes of avoiding conflict by issuing the Olive Branch Petition of 1775 (History.com Editorial Team 2025). In both cases, these attempts at peacefully protesting were met with dismissal and repression. While armed resistance was not a preferred option to most colonists, it appeared to be the only remaining path to liberty after peaceful attempts failed. The colonies ultimately waged war on Britain, and after 7 bloody years, the colonies secured independence with the Treaty of Paris in 1783, demonstrating that in this instance, political violence was an incredibly effective method of achieving the political goal of self-rule in one of the world’s first democracies.
While America’s use of targeted political violence in the Revolutionary War era is often seen as justified in retrospect, South Africa’s apartheid-era political violence offers a much more controversial strategy of using violence to achieve political goals. For much of the 1900s, the African National Congress (ANC) focused on peaceful tactics such as petitions, strikes, and protests with the hopes of ending racial segregation; however, the government responded with arrests, censorship, and massacres, including the murder of 69 peaceful demonstrators at Sharpeville in 1960. Given the futility of peaceful tactics, the ANC created an armed wing, which launched sabotage campaigns against infrastructure, as well as bombings that sometimes killed innocent civilians, which the government labeled as terror attacks (South African History Editorial Team 2011). This violent brand of protesting apartheid drew international attention and made racial oppression much more costly to the South African government. These attacks, combined with economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation, eventually led to the country’s dismantling of apartheid and first truly democratic elections in 1994. Ultimately, South Africa eliminated racial segregation through violent means, even at the cost of innocent civilian lives, ending one of the 20th century’s most horrific systems of racial oppression.
From American colonists waging war against the oppressive British monarchy to South Africans using violence to end apartheid after years of failed peaceful protesting, political violence, under certain circumstances, is at least very effective. Many more instances of effective political violence can be found throughout history, including the Haitian Revolution, French Revolution, and Russian Revolution. While political violence can clearly be effective under the right conditions, several questions remain. Is political violence ever justified? If so, under what conditions? Are civilian casualties ever acceptable in instances of using violence to topple oppressive regimes? The answers to these questions lie in your personal philosophies, values, and moral calculus that you are willing to accept when rights and survival are at stake.
Works Cited
History.com Editors. 2025. “Congress Adopts Olive Branch Petition | July 5, 1775.” History.com. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/july-5/congress-adopts-olive-branch-petition
South African History Online. 2011. “1960–1966: The Genesis of the Armed Struggle.” South African History Online. https://www.sahistory.org.za/article/1960-1966-genesis-armed-struggle
