Media and nonviolent actions

While I think that the effectiveness of non-violent protest is context-dependent, overall I would have to agree that non-violent protest is the more effective method of promoting social change because it does not reproduce the cycle of violence that thrives on hatred. Moreover, I think that non-violent protest is more effective because it shows people's sincerity in wanting to improve society for the better compared to meaningless violence that, as King describes, "...creates bitterness in the survivors and brutality in the destroyers." In response to Lili's question about the intersection of social media and non-violent protest, I think that the vast array of modern social media tools at our disposal can promote non-violent action as much as it can encourage violent protest. Thus, it is important to tread with caution in using social media for social causes, as social media can provide anonymous platforms to advocate widespread acceptance or hate. This idea of social media and non-violent/violent protest can be related to the Egyptian Revolution of 2011 where Facebook played a significant role in coordinating protesters.