Question

Which line from Walking with the Wind: A Memoir of the Movement best exemplifies the influence that Henry David Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" had on John Lewis's beliefs?
A.In the end there was simply not a lot of enthusiasm about this trip to Washington. Someone should go, we decided, simply so we would have a presence.
B. Their feeling was that this would be a lame event, organized by the cautious, conservative traditional power structure of black America, in compliance with and most likely under the control of the federal government.
C. Whenever people have the opportunity to dramatize their feelings, to point out an issue, to educate others and alert them and open their eyes, I think they should do those things.
D. [Harlem] was very different from the South, where we were moving and marching and acting with a sense of community and purpose.

Answer 1

C. Whenever people have the opportunity to dramatize their feelings, to point out an issue, to educate others and alert them and open their eyes, I think they should do those things.

One of the most important themes of Civil Disobedience is the idea that we have the responsibility as citizens to point out the immoral aspects of our society, even if they are enshrined in the political order and culture of our society. Thoreau feels that society as a whole not only can wrong on moral issues but quite often is. It is the responsibility of each citizen to go against the grain when an injustice is discovered, and take the courageous step to hold a mirror to society to open the people's eyes to this injustice.