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Comment by abhi3 | Hacker News Reader

> but then I can't understand why they refused to leave.

Why did Rosa Park not give up her seat? Or Why did Gandhi choose to be thrown out of the train rather move out of first class?

Because they knew that they were being treated unequally.

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Rosa Parks paid her fare before seating.

Speaking of unwritten rules, there were actual written rules that black people had to give up their seats when asked by a white person, couldn’t drink from the same water fountains, etc.

actual. written. rules.

So even though she paid her fare, the rules at the time were that she had to give up her seat when asked.

So not the best counter-point, unless you agree that, whether or not money has been paid, and written or not, bullshit is bullshit. And getting kicked out of a cafe when there are other peaceful loiterers who were not also kicked out, is bullshit.

It is not a counterpoint, just a way to show the limits of an overblown analogy. You should appreciate the moral difference between Parks' and Gandhi's deliberate approach and the entitled arrogance of those two gentlemen, whose actions would be of no relevance if not for their skin color. Strange times. But but! If I'm wrong and the guys were acting a protest against overpriced dairy product shady dealers -- then they will have all the support that my limited means offer and unlimited appreciation.

edit: gratitude, not appreciation, silly me.

She didn’t get on the bus that day going “I am going to deliberately bring attention to this country’s domestic problem today”. She just did not feel like getting up and surrendering her seat.

what happened afterwards is what made it a historic act. Before the year-long bus boycotts began, she was just some black lady who got arrested for disobeying the law.

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