How to Use civil disobedience in a Sentence

civil disobedience

noun
Definition of civil disobediencenext
Synonyms for civil disobediencenext
  • 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.
  • That this round of civil disobedience will lead to real change.
    — Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, 3 June 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
  • He was joined by Rep. Steve Toth in his act of civil disobedience.
    — Fox News, 8 May 2020
  • Americans like to harken back to the civil-rights era as a moment of nonviolence and civil disobedience.
    — Kellie Carter Jackson, The Atlantic, 1 June 2020
  • He’s been arrested for civil disobedience about 40 times.
    — Nick Tabor, Washington Post, 6 Jan. 2020
  • The operation, which ended when police quelled the two-month act of civil disobedience, removed the women and boarded up the home.
    — Sarah Ravani, SFChronicle.com, 14 Feb. 2020
  • Less than three minutes later, a police car pulled up, and their attempt to make a statement from the roadside had become a potential act of civil disobedience.
    — John Eligon, New York Times, 23 Apr. 2020
  • Already, there are calls for civil disobedience to resist such humiliation.
    — The Economist, 11 Dec. 2019
  • Peaceful civil disobedience is one of the few options that people who live in Democratic societies have to enact systemic change.
    — Diana Bray, The Denver Post, 16 Jan. 2020
  • 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  • After bail was revoked, a judge found Mr.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
  • 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
  • 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
  • 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
  • In other words, the purpose of civil disobedience is to break the law and get arrested in order to make societal change.
    — Rosalyn R. Lapier, The Conversation, 12 July 2021
  • In 1930, Gandhi set off from the ashram on the Salt March, a spectacular action of civil disobedience in protest of a British monopoly on salt.
    — Maya Jasanoff, The New Yorker, 19 June 2024
  • In mid-March, the regime tried to stifle the civil disobedience movement by shutting down the mobile internet.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 7 Aug. 2021
  • The protests have been peaceful, and have at times included civil disobedience.
    — Brooks Johnson, Star Tribune, 24 Apr. 2021
  • The unrest and civil disobedience has put law enforcement in the spotlight.
    — Ricardo Torres, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 19 June 2020
  • In the past, the Manhattan DA’s office has declined to prosecute or deferred prosecution cases where large numbers of people were arrested as part of civil disobedience.
    — Mark Morales, CNN, 20 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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