What does oppression mean and how do you take a stand? Oppression is the act of being treated unfairly due to someone abusing the power they may have over someone. Women go about their daily lives not often reflecting on the struggles and battles that other women had to endure during the time of women's suffrage. Women in this period fought tenaciously for the right to vote and to ensure that their voices were heard. Martin Luther King, an activist and leader of the civil rights movement, wrote a powerful essay in 1958. The essay “Three Ways to Meet Oppression” highlights the best methods of dealing with oppression through acquiescence, violence and non-violence. King wrote a strong essay because of his familiarity with oppression, African Americans were discriminated against and segregated because of the color of their skin. The methods King mentions can be seen throughout the women's suffrage movement, depicted in the film "Iron Jawed Angels." Women fought their oppression through strikes, marches, and a prison hunger strike that led to the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. The three ways King deals with oppression are all significantly depicted in the film "Iron Jawed Angels" and can also be seen in current situations today. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay One of the methods of dealing with oppression that King mentions is acquiescence. Acquiescence is a way of accepting oppression, of passively accepting unfair treatment. In the movie “Iron Jawed Angels,” Paul and the other women marched and the men in the side rows kept yelling at them. Men shouted "Look what you have under your skirt!" “Are you trying to be a man?” These men shouted their expectations towards a woman because not all women had the strength to oppose women's suffrage. They believed that women did not belong on a parade and that showing strength was their attempt to become a man. Women were expected to accept unfair treatment because they were seen as a minority. Another example is the number of countries around the world that still do not accept the LGBT community. There are countries where homosexuality is still considered illegal. People who are part of the LGBT community living in Russia have found it difficult to be themselves. “Discrimination based on sexual orientation is widespread in Russia. Harassment, threats and acts of violence against LGBT people occurred. Government officials have been known to make derogatory comments toward LGBT people.” Russia's LGBT community must resort to leaving the country to be with their significant other or agree to live in silence, oppressed by their true sexuality. Conforming to oppression means giving authority to the oppressor and allowing him to believe that he is morally correct. A second way of addressing oppression that King mentions is through the use of violence. Violence is a method that he finds destructive due to the hatred it fuels and which does not provide a peaceful solution. In the movie "Iron Jawed Angels" we see Alice Paul and Lucy Burns meeting with NAWSA and asking if they can hold a suffragist parade. They were strictly asked not to use the methods used by the English. British women were adapting the method of violence to protest women's suffrage. The film mentions that they were causing destruction and throwing bricks at government buildings. “The suffragettes disrupted everyday British life and many ended up in prison. The first reasons)."