Every individual in a society has a responsibility to obey just laws and to disobey and resist unjust laws Write a response in which you discuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the claim In developing and supporting your position be sure to

Laws are an integral aspect of a society, and they determine to a large extent how inhabitants of a society behave generally. But what is more important is the kind of laws existing in a particular society – are they just laws or unjust laws? This is a question that has existed for ages across various societies around the world. While some might argue that all individuals existing in a society are tasked with the responsibility of obeying just laws and disobeying unjust laws, others posit the contrary.

Before diving in any further, what are laws? Laws are simply rules and regulations put in place to ensure everyone is treated equally and fairly. If this is the case, what then makes a law to be unjust? Who defines whether a law is just or unjust? Is it the government? If this is the case, then what a particular government might perceive as just to the citizens of a society might not in all sense appear JUST to the citizens.

While it may appear that the responsibility of obeying just laws and disobeying unjust laws shouldn’t sit on the shoulders of every individual of a society, the contrary plays out more often than expected. How’s this? Consider the illustration of a society with many unjust laws that infringe on the rights of its inhabitants, such as one that prevents anyone from stepping out of his/her homes from Friday to Sunday. This would sound just in a society where everyone doesn’t necessarily have to step out of their homes daily before they can eat. However, in a society where a significant proportion of its inhabitants feed from hand to mouth, it would be definitely unjust for them to stay at home for 3 days with no plans on what to eat during this said period. In this case, the responsibility of disobeying such unjust laws rests on their shoulders.

Another scenario would be where inhabitants of a society flout just laws. Laws exist to keep everyone in check, and in cases where they are disobeyed, such laws are as good as useless. In cases where flouting of such just laws by a person hampers on the well-being of other citizens, the effects of doing so are even more pronounced. Take for example, a law that says that everyone in the bank has to fall into a queue, and wait for their turn before they are attended to. In a situation where someone comes from nowhere and heads straight to the cashier, ignoring the standing queue, those obeying the just rule would certainly be galled. Hence, for the sake of fairness, it behooves every individual of a society to disobey unjust laws, while obeying just laws.

Having said all these, another question arises – Isn’t the perception of a law as just or unjust subjective, and not generalized? Of course, the former prevails – what may appear as just to a certain person in a society may seem totally unjust to another individual in the same society. This gives room for conflicts among inhabitants of a society, and even provides support for the notion that it is not the responsibility of every individual of a society to obey just laws and disobey unjust laws.

In conclusion, while it may seem wrong for every individual of a society to be tasked with the responsibility of obeying just laws and disobeying unjust laws due to the role subjectivity plays, the reasons mentioned above prove otherwise.