Petition

A petition is a formal request for action or change. It is most often addressed to a government official or a public entity. While people often think of petitions as written documents, they can also be oral. In the modern era, petitions are frequently transmitted via the internet. When a person makes a petition to a deity, this is known as supplication. This tool allows individuals or groups to express their needs or grievances to those in power.

In the legal system, a petition serves a very specific function. It can be the title of a legal pleading that starts a court case. This is different from a complaint, which is used in civil lawsuits to seek money, also called damages. A petition is used when a person seeks equitable relief. This is non-monetary help, such as child custody or the probate of a will. In some courts, an "act on petition" is a summary process. This process helps handle complex matters in divorce or probate cases.

History shows that petitioning has existed for thousands of years. The first documented petitions came from slaves in Ancient Egypt. These workers petitioned for better working conditions while building pyramids. In Imperial China, petitions were sent to the Office of Transmission, or Tongzheng si. There, court secretaries read the requests aloud to the emperor. Anyone could send a petition, from a common farmer to a scholar-official. If a petition was persuasive enough to show a local official was corrupt, it was more likely to be read.

Different empires developed unique ways to manage these requests. In the Ottoman Empire, people could petition local representatives or the sultan directly. In Istanbul, a special bureau tracked and archived these petitions. This bureau was influenced by the systems used in Byzantine Constantinople. Starting in the early 1740s, these petitions were kept in a unique archive. Between the 15th and 20th centuries, hundreds of thousands of petitions were archived there. These requests even helped develop jurisprudence, which is a system of law.

In England, petitions helped shape the power of the government. During the reign of Edward I from 1272 to 1307, petitioning helped create legislative power for the Parliament of England. By the 18th and 19th centuries, petitions were a common way to protest. Between 1780 and 1918, one million petitions were submitted to the British House of Commons. One of the largest was the Great Charter, also called the petition of the Chartists. This shows how many people used this tool to demand change.

The United States also recognizes this right in its highest law. The Petition Clause of the First Amendment guarantees the right to petition the government for a redress of grievances. This includes the right to file lawsuits against the government. Petitions are also vital in the election process. In many places, candidates must gather many signatures to appear on an official ballot. In 2003, a recall election in California used millions of signatures. This process eventually led to the election of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Beyond law and politics, petitions carry immense moral weight. During the apartheid era in South Africa, millions signed petitions to free Nelson Mandela. These petitions had no legal effect at the time. However, they created a moral force that helped end apartheid. Today, non-governmental organizations like Amnesty International use petitions to support various causes. They use this moral authority to push for change in the world.

Modern technology has changed how we participate in petitioning. In the United Kingdom, a 1990 petition against ambulance service cuts gained 4.5 million signatures. Today, many Britons use the UK Parliament petitions website. The internet has made petitioning even more common in the 21st century. The platform Change.org was founded in 2007 and has around 50 million registered users. Research suggests that petitioning can have therapeutic benefits. It can help people find meaning, take social action, and feel a sense of agency and empowerment.