Protests and Violence

How successful can a peaceful protest be? And if it can be successful, would it not be more successful as a violent one? For example, the protests after the assassination of MLK was incredibly violent. Even the threat of this violence scared congress to almost immediately pass the open housing bill. The armed protests at Cornell were largely successful for the protestors as well, with very little repercussion but tangible benefits for minorities. Most violent protests only end with more violence, but is this violence inevitable? What are people supposed to do if peaceful protest aren't yielding results as violent protests are? Hopefully we will continue to explore these questions in class and in later examples of protest.