Demonstrations in America: An Assessment of the Factors Motivating Non-Violence at the Million Man March in 1995 and Violence at Unite the Right Rally 2017 in Charlottesville, Improper Police Response

This report has been professionally converted for accurate flowing-text e-book format reproduction. Demonstrations have brought awareness to issues of healthcare, civil rights, women's rights, and the environment. While most of these demonstrations have been peaceful, some have resulted in injury and death. This thesis attempts to develop an understanding of the factors motivating non-violence and violence at U.S. demonstrations by examining the 1995 Million March and the 2017 Unite the Right Rally. Seven crucial questions—What were the organizational efforts and funding source for the demonstrations? Who were the key players or organizations that participated in the demonstration and do they have a history violence? What was the rhetoric of the speakers and performers at the demonstration? What were the actions of the protestors and counter-protestors? What were the actions of law enforcement during the demonstration? Did any legal cases result from the demonstration? What was the media coverage before and after the event?—are analyzed for an understanding of the factors that lead to violence at demonstrations. The findings show that non-violent demonstrations share four factors: extensive planning for the demonstration, the presence of religious leaders, rhetoric of non-violence in the speeches, and the demonstrators' ability to police themselves. In contrast, violent demonstrations share only lack of preparation by public officials, and improper responses from law enforcement, which may be the two determining factors for violence at these events.

From the inception of the United States until the present, peaceful assembly has been a way for individuals to express their beliefs in a public forum. More recently, peaceful assembly has been utilized to focus awareness on the issues of healthcare, civil rights injustices, women's rights, and the environment. In 1995, the Million Man March organized by controversial figure Louis Farrakhan was the largest gathering of African-American men in United States history; it was expected to be a violent event due to the portrayal of African-American men in America at the time. However, the event became known for its positive speeches, prayer, and performances that called for reconciliation, unity, and atonement. Contrarily, in 2017, the Unite the Right Rally, in Charlottesville, VA, a significantly smaller demonstration and counter-demonstration than the Million Man March, resulted in three deaths and more than 30 injuries of either protesters, counter-protesters, or law enforcement. Understanding what leads to violence at demonstrations is imperative to preserving the inalienable rights of United States citizens by ensuring their safety when they are invoking their First Amendment right to peaceably assemble.

The author examines a non-violent and violent case study in which both demonstrations are based on race. The thesis provides brief historical background on the case study, and will ask seven crucial questions: what were the organizational efforts and funding source for the demonstrations; who were the key players or organizations that participated in the demonstration and do they have a history violence; what was the rhetoric of the speakers and performers at the demonstration; what were the actions of the protestors and counter-protestors; what were the actions of law enforcement during the demonstrations; did any legal cases result from the demonstration, and what was the media coverage before and after the demonstration; what was public official response to the demonstration; and to what extent did the media cover the demonstration? After answering these questions, the author will be able to provide analysis on common patterns discovered in non-violent and violent demonstrations.