The difference between a just law is that is a man made code with the moral law of god and an unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law according to MLK any law that uplifts human is just and any law that degrades human personality is un just 

Yes I believe that unjust and  just does shape our society today. We women can all agree that one huge one is the fact that we cannot choose what to do with our bodies . Abortion is illegal in some states 

MLK would say that a unjust law is a code that is out of harmony and we call all agree that a good example is abortion women are stripped from making that choice in some states

1. According to MLK, the difference between a ‘just’ law is that is a man-made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An ‘unjust’ law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. Reading 13.1 states, ” To put it in the terms of St. Thomas Aquinas: An unjust law is a human law that is not rooted in eternal law and natural law. Any law that uplifts human personality is just. Any law that degrades human personality is unjust. All segregation statutes are unjust because segregation distorts the soul and damages the personality. It gives the segregator a false sense of superiority and the segregated a false sense of inferiority.” (MLK 3) This example shows how MLK defines the difference between ‘unjust’ and ‘just’ laws in various examples.
2. Yes, I do believe these ‘unjust’ and ‘just’ laws shape the way society lives its lives. The reason I say this is because we have unjust laws at this moment just like throughout all history we have had a few minor changes, but a current unjust law we women are dealing with in some states is abortion rights, many women have unplanned pregnancies and are forced to keep their child. I understand that there can be many risks in doing abortions and can even cause deaths to those under the procedure but women should feel the need to be able to have rights. Unjust and just laws could affect politics Law is also how the government itself is structured, regulated, and controlled. Reading 13.1 states, “One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.” (MLK 3)
3. The most common ‘unjust’ law we have right now is Abortion. Abortion rights were taken away from women this year, Women deserve to have rights over their bodies and could decide whether or not they going to have a child. When will it be the day that women have the same equality as men, women have been fighting for their rights forever. As MLK would say An ‘unjust’ law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. A ‘just’ law is having the right to go to college at any age. MLK would see this as a ‘just’ law. “Any law that uplifts human personality is just.”

1. According to MLK, the way to tell the difference between just laws and unjust laws is that just laws uplifts the human personality, while unjust laws degrade the human personality.
2. I do believe that this distinction between the two laws can make a difference in the way someone lives their life, because in general positive and uplifting thoughts and lifestyles will lead to better human outcomes than having negative ideas and beliefs on different views. That being said, I am not 100% certain that all just laws are uplifting, as I believe a lot of them are there to keep a certain status quo and avoidance of possible anarchy in a certain situation.
3. An example of a just law in society today in our country would be allowing gay marriage. It promotes equality and helps chip away at the negative stereotypes around gay and lesbians that has been present in our country for a long time. An example of an unjust law would be the reversal of Roe v. Wade, as it takes away a woman’s right to have an abortion. Its negative outcomes and controversies outweighs any positive outcomes as a result.

1 .According to MLK, how can we tell the difference between just and unjust laws?

A fair law is one that enhances human personality. It is unfair for a law to diminish human personality. Because segregation harms the soul and the personality, all segregation laws are unjust. It creates a false sense of inferiority among the isolated.

2. In your view, is this an important distinction (between just and unjust laws), do you think it makes a difference in the way someone (as an individual, or our society as a whole) lives their lives? Can it affect our politics?

In my view unjust law helps to maintain systems of power, impose suffering and class distinctions, disproportionately causes suffering in minority groups, and silences political opposition, a just law serves to promote real equity, uplifts, satisfies needs, and prevents suffering. One has a duty to uphold just laws both legally and morally. Failure to obey just laws can completely disrupt the political system in a society. Without law enforcement, the political ability to deal with national security and public safety issues is severely limited.

3. Based on our discussion of Question 1, give an example each, of an unjust and just law, in the US today.

Currently, the US has two distinct legal systems. One for the rich and one for the rest of the society. Only a person’s level of money may determine whether they are in or out of prison. A rich individual can pay for their release prior to trial, maintain their employment, and remain in their house while organizing their defense. Poor people who are arrested must remain in jail for days, weeks, months, or even years while their cases are pending. The just law of US is whoever commits murder in the first order must be punished by death or by life in prison, whoever commits murder in the second degree shall be sentenced to prison for any period of years or for life. This law implies on everyone either rich or poor.

According to MLK, how can we tell the difference between just and unjust laws?

A just law is a law that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An unjust law is a law that is out of harmony with the moral law.

In your view, is this an important distinction (between just and unjust laws), do you think it makes a difference in the way someone (as an individual, or our society as a whole) lives their lives? Can it affect our politics?

I don’t think it makes a difference how we live our lives as a whole, a society or as individual person because if a law is not put in place to prevent the targeting of a specific group, race or gender of people no matter how law abiding you are, you will eventually be a victim of injustice if there is nothing set in place to protect you.

Based on our discussion of Question 1, give an example each, of an unjust and just law, in the US today. Explain what makes it unjust or just (using MLK’s definition of those two types of laws).

A just law is our constitutional rights that our founding fathers had previously written which is for us the people to have the right to bear arms. Unjust laws are the governments rights to amend our constitutional rights to prohibit and implement changes that would stop us from having the right to bear arms. No law should infringe in our rights to bear arms.

1. According to MLK, how can we tell the difference between just and unjust laws? Understanding this questions is the most important part of this module, and I will ask it again during our second exam.

King says that any law that uplifts human personality is just, and any law that degrades human personality is unjust. In essence, King is saying that as laws exist to protect our rights as citizens, if they make life harder than easier, the law is failing and is unjust. This is not to say that unjust laws haven’t been used to major effect, for example, Jim crow and the Black Codes. A contemporary example could be the Patriot act. These laws were not failures in a practical sense. But in a constitutional sense, they were failures since they do/did not uphold our equal rights as individuals.

1. In your view, is this an important distinction (between just and unjust laws), do you think it makes a difference in the way someone (as an individual, or our society as a whole) lives their lives? Can it affect our politics?

Yes, I think that it makes a huge difference partially due to our perception of the law. I think that we should view and have laws that serve as a guide for a good life, and lead to living virtuously in the Aristotelean context of the word. However, in a society where we don’t feel protected by the law as individuals, the law does nothing to encourage living with virtue. It actually encourages the opposite. When individuals commit acts of crime it’s often because respect for authority cannot be blind and must be mutual, and it’s not. Many are trapped in cycles of poverty and will be treated as scum regardless of their attempts at living virtuously. This is clearly unjust and both sides of the modern political spectrum claim to be the victims of this for their own distinct reasons.

1. Based on our discussion of Question 1, give an example each, of an unjust and just law, in the US today. Explain what makes it unjust or just (using MLK’s definition of those two types of laws).

A good example of an unjust law is the patriot act. Because the law was racialized, and rarely used in the context of its invention, the Patriot act failed in many respects. But how would King determine the law to be unjust? If the law protected us from terrorist attacks, it would be harder to explain the law as unjust. However, the patriot act was a bigger weapon in the war on drugs than it was terrorism. Whether you believe drug dealers and users to be scum or not does matter. As citizens, we have rights that stress we are innocent until proven guilty. Taking this away from us is unconstitutional. Since drug dealers are not bombing churches or anything of the sort I’m largely convinced that the Patriot act was extreme overkill in its usage, and rarely (if ever) protected us from something significant. So if it doesn’t stop terrorism, and it’s overkill in any other situation, it’s pretty clear that the patriot act does not encourage the growth of human personality. On the other hand, the law itself (just laws) is necessary. For example, cars are not allowed to drive in the bike lane because that would be dangerous for bikers, and this does uplift human personality by resulting in fewer car/bike-related accidents and deaths.

According to MLK, how can we tell the difference between just and unjust laws?  Understanding this questions is the most important part of this module, and I will ask it again during our second exam.

You can tell the difference between just and unjust laws by one has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws versus one who has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. One does not use harmony within the moral of law versus one uses a code within the moral law.

In your view, is this an important distinction (between just and unjust laws), do you think it makes a difference in the way someone (as an individual, or our society as a whole) lives their lives? Can it affect our politics?

I do believe there is an important distinction between just and unjust laws and it does make a different in how someone lives their lives. As just and unjust laws are ruled over making that moral responsibility in obeying the laws, these do affect people and societies as it divides people into groups. I do feel as this is also based upon social classes and how upon individuals are raised.

Based on our discussion of Question 1, give an example each, of an unjust and just law, in the US today. Explain what makes it unjust or just (using MLK’s definition of those two types of laws

An example of a unjust law would be cash bails that cannot be afford by an individual, especially for a low crime. An example of just law would be laws passing by the United States government.

1. According to MLK, how can we tell the difference between just and unjust laws?  Understanding this questions is the most important part of this module, and I will ask it again during our second exam.

Just laws are something everybody follows as unjust laws aren’t legitimate laws but more something created to dehumanize others.

2. In your view, is this an important distinction (between just and unjust laws), do you think it makes a difference in the way someone (as an individual, or our society as a whole) lives their lives? Can it affect our politics?

Absolutely. In all that is said and explained Just and unjust laws are very much relevant now as they were then. Politics play a huge role in this because as much as we would like to act like everything is seen through certain point of views, politicians still seek to benefit what works for them, then what is the correct thing to do.

3. Based on our discussion of Question 1, give an example each, of an unjust and just law, in the US today. Explain what makes it unjust or just (using MLK’s definition of those two types of laws).

The best example is segregation. Segregation would be considered the unjust law. As the civil rights act would be considered the Just law, since it’s what abolished segregation in all states.

Veronica Gonzalez

POL 100 (0504) – Intro. to American Govt. – Fall 2022

Discussion Board 13.1

QA1. According to Martin Luther King, we can tell the difference between a just and unjust law by the morality that can be put into question with regards to the law. An unjust law is a law that is not morally positive to society. A just law is a man-made law that is morally positive to society and in agreement with the law of God. The difference between the prior and the latter is determined by the morals, good or bad, it is rooted in. An unjust law is unjust because it seeks to degrade a human being while a just law seeks to uplift a human being.  

QA2. From my perspective, this distinction between a just and unjust law makes a difference in how people and society live their lives. Recognizing and standing against unjust laws and their detrimental effects helps individuals recognize that all human beings have value. Justice is also in some way connected to having good morals. If we don’t have or promote good morals, dare it be said, Godly morals, then the politics in our nation becomes distorted. Moral distortion values the things that are wrong i.e., racism, segregation, discrimination and allows for the creation and enforcement of these types of laws that support these behaviors and makes them acceptable. Yes, our nation is affected and impacted negatively when Godly morals don’t exist or are not valued.  
QA3. In my opinion, “Stop & Frisk” is an example of an unjust law. Although its initial intention was to protect society from criminals, its misuse led to racial profiling. “Stop & Frisk” was used statistically specifically on the Latino and Black population more than on the white population and came to violate the 4th Amendment rights, (free from unreasonable search & seizure), of people. Priority parking for disabled individuals is an example of a just law because it takes into consideration a population that has special needs and that regardless of their special needs, the government cares enough to encourage them to meet their activities of daily living.

1. According to MLK,  an unjust law degrades the human personality, while a just law, uplifts the human personality.

2. I think this is an important distinction, and it makes a difference in the way someone lives their lives. When laws are passed, there’s always punishment for those who violate the laws. Let’s say an unjust law is passed, like the Fugitive Slave Act of 1793, which imposed punishment on aide on aided/harbored escaped slaves, people are less willing to help escaped slaves even if they wanted because they don’t want to face those penalties. This is a difference in how people lived their lives in that period. I also think it can affect our politics. For example, the passing of the Enabling Act which laid the foundation for the complete Nazification of the German society, and the cornerstone of Hitler’s dictatorship is an example of how unjust law can affect politics.

3. An example of a just law in our society today are state laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. This allows everyone to be who they really want to be and be with whoever they choose. These people can express their self, and feelings just like everyone without being discriminated. This is just because according to MLK, laws like this uplift’s human personality.

An example of an unjust law in our society today is sending people to jail for being unable to pay a parking ticket. In the US today, if you get a ticket for a parking violation, and fail to pay, these fines pile up, and you can be arrested and spend time in jail. Not everyone has the ability has the ability or money to pay up all these fines and sending them to jail for just a parking ticket, is like punishing them for being poor. This is unjust because according to MLK, this degrades the human personality.