Early struggles of gandhi
Share
Sign Up to our social questions and Answers Engine to ask questions, answer people’s questions, and connect with other people.
Login to our social questions & Answers Engine to ask questions answer people’s questions & connect with other people.
Gandhi's early struggles were formative experiences that deeply influenced his life and shaped his ideologies and methods of activism. Here are some key struggles Gandhi faced in his early life:
Racial Discrimination in South Africa: Gandhi's initial experience of racial discrimination in South Africa was a pivotal moment. Despite being a trained lawyer from India, he faced discrimination and was ejected from a first-class train compartment in South Africa due to his skin color. This incident sparked his activism against racial segregation and injustice.
Championing Civil Rights in South Africa: Gandhi spent about two decades in South Africa, where he fought for the civil rights of Indians who faced discrimination under British colonial rule. He organized protests, launched campaigns for equal rights, and used nonviolent resistance tactics to challenge discriminatory laws.
Satyagraha and Nonviolent Resistance: Gandhi developed the concept of Satyagraha (truth-force) during his time in South Africa. This philosophy advocated for nonviolent resistance and passive resistance as a means to achieve social and political change. It became a cornerstone of his later movements in India.
Struggles in India: Upon returning to India, Gandhi faced various challenges in his efforts to unite a diverse population against British colonial rule. He navigated through societal divisions, such as caste and religious differences, and aimed to create a unified movement for independence.
Champaran and Kheda Movements: Gandhi's early struggles in India included the Champaran and Kheda movements. In Champaran, Bihar, he organized protests against exploitative indigo planters, advocating for the rights of oppressed farmers. In Kheda, Gujarat, he supported peasants affected by a severe famine and led a successful nonviolent agitation for relief measures.
Non-Cooperation Movement: One of Gandhi's significant early struggles was the Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-1922), a nationwide movement that aimed at boycotting British institutions, goods, and laws. Although the movement was suspended after incidents of violence at Chauri Chaura, it showcased Gandhi's leadership and mass mobilization.
These early struggles in South Africa and India laid the foundation for Gandhi's philosophy of nonviolent resistance, civil disobedience, and his lifelong commitment to social justice, human rights, and the pursuit of Indian independence from British colonial rule.