THE NONVIOLENCE REVOLUTION

JUNIOR DIVISION WEBSITE

Sara Burgoa Natalie Nicholson

Mahatma Gandhi once said, Nonviolence is the greatest force at the disposal of mankind. It is mightier than the mightiest weapon of destruction devised by the ingenuity of man. We chose the topic of Gandhis nonviolent revolution not only because the great force Gandhi described intrigued us, but also because we knew Gandhis philosophy of nonviolence changed the course of history forever. Interested in the causes and effects of the civil protests, we realized that Gandhis nonviolent revolution would make an excellent research topic. We had heard of Gandhis actions before and were attracted to the idea of learning more about him. Both of us had some prior knowledge of Gandhi and civil disobedience, but we wanted to investigate his legacy further. Using evidence from primary and secondary sources, we found an abundance of useful information. We studied interview transcripts and examined some of Gandhis speeches, leaving no details unturned. Most of our sources were found online, using websites such as GandhiServe.org, which had a collection of Gandhis writings throughout the years. Another useful source of information was MahatmaGandhiArchives.com, which provided newspaper articles from the time. Needless to say, our research was conducted using primary and secondary sources found online in a variety of websites. We chose to use a website because we felt that it was it was the most interactive presentation category. Taking full advantage of images and video content that could only be available digitally, our intention was to engross the reader into an engaging learning experience. A website allowed us to incorporate multimedia onto the Weebly platform, increasing our range of primary sources. Because Gandhi's revolutionary philosophy of nonviolent protests in the Indian Independence Movement brought down the British control in India, won India's freedom, developed devout followers, and turned the course of history by inspiring later peaceful protests, it reflects the

theme of Turning Point in History. Prior to its success, nonviolence was often interpreted as a weapon of the weak, while Gandhi believed it was a weapon only used by the strong. His concepts of civil disobedience and non-cooperation were new and foreign to most. No one had ever maintained constant nonviolence when faced with violence itself. Had it not been for the nonviolent reformation of protesting by Gandhi, other peaceful movements might not have made as much of an impact as they did. Gandhis nonviolent protests changed the course of history by inspiring leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela to start their own campaigns.