How to Use civil disobedience in a Sentence

civil disobedience

noun
  • In an act of civil disobedience, the family sent its tax money to an antiwar organization.
  • A student organization is encouraging civil disobedience as a way to get the university to change its policies.
  • He was arrested for his own civil disobedience and for being gay.
    Raisa Bruner, Time, 6 June 2018
  • Jim Crow laws were defeated through mass protests and civil disobedience.
    Laila Lalami, New York Times, 26 June 2018
  • In San Francisco, workers will march in the crux of downtown during rush hour as an act of civil disobedience.
    Nancy Trejos, USA TODAY, 26 June 2018
  • Some demonstrators have promised to engage in peaceful civil disobedience and invite arrest.
    Fox News, 25 June 2018
  • In their opinion, sit-ins, protests and civil disobedience as a whole were explicitly against Paul’s instructions to Christians.
    Michael Harriot, The Root, 15 June 2018
  • There were calls for civil disobedience and concerns about America slipping toward dictatorship.
    Shane Goldmacher, New York Times, 3 July 2018
  • He was joined by Rep. Steve Toth in his act of civil disobedience.
    Fox News, 8 May 2020
  • And these are just a few of the many countries that saw large demonstrations of civil disobedience this year.
    NBC News, 24 Dec. 2019
  • The group used civil disobedience in the form of shutdowns and protests as a tactic to counter Indian rule.
    NBC News, 2 Sep. 2021
  • After bail was revoked, a judge found Mr. Lai guilty on a pair of civil disobedience charges and sentenced him to 14 months in prison.
    Mark L. Clifford and L. Gordon Crovitz, WSJ, 25 Aug. 2022
  • But as Shafer would soon learn, tiny-home living appealed to more than those with a taste for civil disobedience.
    WIRED, 2 Sep. 2023
  • That this round of civil disobedience will lead to real change.
    Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, 3 June 2020
  • Some fear that a lack of what the Black people in town perceive as justice could result in civil disobedience.
    NBC News, 20 Oct. 2021
  • In the months that followed, millions took to the streets in protest and worked to delegitimize the government through a campaign of civil disobedience.
    Washington Post, 28 Feb. 2021
  • Several labor unions called on their members to walk off the job in a show of civil disobedience.
    Nicholas Bariyo, WSJ, 25 Oct. 2021
  • Has any act of civil disobedience in the U.S. been as impactful in the 21st century?
    Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 28 Oct. 2021
  • Some movie theaters stayed open in an act of civil disobedience.
    Raf Casert, ajc, 27 Dec. 2021
  • More than 40% of all protests involved some civil disobedience, the report said.
    Fox News, 2 Dec. 2020
  • Meanwhile, there is not much the police can do should tactics switch to a campaign of low-level civil disobedience—strikes, sit-ins and so on.
    The Economist, 1 Aug. 2019
  • It could be seen as support for the nationwide strike of state railway workers, who are part of the civil disobedience movement against the coup.
    Fox News, 13 Mar. 2021
  • The attacks could also have been an act of civil disobedience.
    Ivana Kottasová, CNN, 27 July 2024
  • This is the third time he's been arrested for civil disobedience.
    J. Edward Moreno, azcentral, 14 July 2019
  • The activists want to draw attention on the climate protest by blocking roads and with other acts of civil disobedience in Berlin and other cities around the world.
    Geir Moulson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Oct. 2019
  • Others say protests and civil disobedience will be more fruitful than the electoral process.
    Scott Wartman, The Enquirer, 6 July 2021
  • Alongside the protests, a civil disobedience campaign of strikes has paralysed large parts of the economy.
    NBC News, 30 Mar. 2021
  • In one of Canada’s wild natural expanses lies a sleepy beach town known for sand, surf, and one of the country’s largest acts of civil disobedience.
    Clarissa Dawes, National Geographic, 11 Oct. 2020
  • Ascetic and unflinching, Gandhi changed the face of civil disobedience around the world.
    Erin Blakemore, National Geographic, 27 Sep. 2019
  • Thinking Ethical hacking: saving society with computer code As a form of civil disobedience, hacking can help make the world a better place.
    Big Think, 24 June 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'civil disobedience.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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