THE SCREAMS OF SILENT PROTEST

By- Shreya Jain, INN/Chennai, @Infodeaofficial

The modern world is fighting battles with plethora of global issues on a daily basis and trying to raise their voice of concern in the process of coping with the challenges lying ahead. Acts of protest have always had a spine of firm reasons supported by facts and figures, be it a peaceful protest or a violent one. Both protests, no matter how they’re done, are seeking support for their cause so that their voice can reach on the deaf ears of authorities. The effect of a protest has never been a function of violence or peaceful methods. It has always been dependent on the perseverance, grit, will and resistance of the heart of the people invested in the cause.

A peaceful protest is also known as non-violent resistance. There are various forms of peaceful protests.
Some of them are Dharnas, Hunger Strikes, Silence, Candle march etc. This class of protest has been used to advocate for a number of different causes, including human rights issues, anti-war campaigns, and expressing disapproval of various political/governmental policy issues.
Some general methods include boycotting certain products, participating in a march or a sit-in, displaying a particular symbol, and handing out flyers.
Have you ever felt that a law was unjust? Or, has your country indulged in a war that you did not support? There are a number of different ways that you can express your dissatisfaction with these issues, and one of them is through peaceful protesting.

Sanjana Samdariya

“Protest is when I say I don’t like this. Resistance is when I put an end to what is don’t like. Protest is when I say I refuse to go along with this anymore. Resistance is when I make sure everybody else stops going along too.”
– Sanjana Samdariya, Department of Visual Communication, Shasun Jain College, Chennai.
There are many who think that protesting silently for an issue scream volumes in comparison to the violent and fierce methods. The capital of our country serves to be the standing example of the above mentioned fact as the candle march of Jessica Murder case, Nirbhaya Case and countless other incidents witnessed the country’s unity make a difference in the eyes of law as well as government.

Ojaswi Lodha

“Dharna, or if I must be more precise, ‘silent protest’ is a way for people to stand up for themselves without choosing the path of non-violence. Also, it is rightly said, “action speaks louder than words” and the only action people can take up to is by being silent. And that is the beginning of change.”
– Ojaswi Lodha, Department of Visual Communication, Shasun Jain College, Chennai.
The journey of a silent protest is a sinusoidal one. The troughs go as low as water cannons and lathi charge on the protestors but their resolute stand on the issue plays a pivotal role in keeping their purpose intact. The crests have no bounds. Silent protests have always created waves in today’s society and aligned a group of people on the path of vision of justice. The determination of these people to even go behind the bars, if needed, clearly expressed the prowess of a common man.

 

Pooja Sah

Following the long line of people with the ideology of ‘Justice Delayed is Justice Denied’, Pooja Shah, Department of Psychology, Shasun Jain College, Chennai said “Silent protest make a short term impact to the society and people tend to forget about it after sometime. It makes no sense to make candle light marches and hunger strikes for weeks and months to get justice.”

Their argument is not false either. How do we justify the incompetency of our courts, police and government that a rape victim gets the date of her hearing 4 years after her death? How are facts and evidences manipulated in the name of ‘Confusion’ which lets the guilty roam around in the streets?
We are living in an era of change and change begins at home.

The decision to raise your opinion and act upon it is the foundation of a protest. Anyone can pass judgments sitting in their home but only a few have the heart of going out in the streets and give a voice to their heart. A voice loud enough to gather one and all. A voice capable of uniting this nation for a cause as great as humanity. A silent protest which screams as loud as a million voices in unison.

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