Star Wars makes the point that so much depends on your point of view. This can be applied to the Rebel Alliance and the Empire.
From one perspective, the Rebels were freedom fighters attempting to end the evil Empire’s oppression; from another perspective, they were terrorists wreaking havoc on a governing body that was trying to maintain order–and killing many civilians in the process.
So, which perspective is true? Was the Rebellion a group of freedom fighters or terrorists?
The Rebel Alliance used questionable methods in their campaign against the Empire; but this is true of every war. The Rebels killed many innocent people in their battles, but they never did so intentionally, so they were not terrorists.
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Who Is the Rebel Alliance in Star Wars?
The Alliance to Restore the Republic, also known as the Rebel Alliance, was introduced in the original Star Wars trilogy. This rag-tag band of humans, droids, and aliens opposed the oppressive Galactic Empire, attempting to restore peace and freedom to a war-torn galaxy.
There have been many faces of the Rebel Alliance throughout Star Wars movies, shows, and other media. Some of these characters include Luke Skywalker, Jyn Erso, Ezra Bridger, Mon Mothma, Chewbacca, and R2-D2.
The rebels often accomplish their purposes through espionage, assassination, and guerrilla warfare. Though they do everything in the name of freedom, fans have wondered if this noble end justifies the means.
Were the Rebels Freedom Fighters or Terrorists?
The original Star Wars movies are often seen as being morally black-and-white; it’s a battle of freedom vs. oppression, hope vs. hopelessness, life vs. death, good vs. evil.
However, if you take a closer look at the Original Trilogy, and the Star Wars franchise as a whole, you begin to realize there is a lot of moral gray area.
To be sure, most people would not consider the Empire to be “the good guys”. But many who fought on the side of the Empire were not particularly power-hungry or blood-thirsty; they were doing their duty or perhaps serving time while on their way to better things in life.
Meanwhile, the rebels often used questionable tactics to achieve their own goals, which, at their heart, were political. They were trying to restore the fallen Galactic Republic. And, though they were fighting for the good of the galaxy, their means of achieving it did not live up to the nobility of their goal.
Many innocent people died at the hands of the rebels. But, as one writer pointed out, an unavoidable side effect of war is the loss of innocent life. Civilians always get caught in the middle. As long as wars continue to be fought, there is no way to avoid this.
The Empire also killed many innocent people; and because many of them were “only doing their duty”, this doesn’t necessarily excuse them. Even if they lacked conviction, they still fought on the side of oppression, perhaps because it was the path of least resistance.
Back to the main question though: are the rebels freedom fighters or terrorists? To further explore this question, let’s look at the real-life inspiration behind the major players of the Star Wars universe, as well as how terrorism is defined.
What Real-Life Examples Inspired the Empire and the Rebellion?
When watching the Original Trilogy, it isn’t hard to see parallels with our own world.
Some may see the David-and-Goliath struggle between the massive Empire and the small, scrappy Republic as resembling the American Revolution. Others may connect the fight for freedom and equality to the American Civil War.
But the actual inspiration for the Star Wars saga is more contemporary. George Lucas originally conceived the idea in the early 1970s, during the Vietnam War and while President Richard Nixon was in office.
Lucas’ inspiration for the Empire was the United States, which he felt was trading democracy for dictatorship at the time. Star Wars was, largely, his commentary on what could happen if America continued down the road it was on.
Meanwhile, the inspiration for the Rebel Alliance was actually the Viet Cong, a group of revolutionaries during the Vietnam War which opposed the United States. The Viet Cong were considered terrorists.
With this in mind, it is easy to see how some might consider the Rebels to be terrorists–after all, they were inspired by a real-life terrorist group. However, the answer to the question is not that simple.
How Is Terrorism Defined?
“Terrorism” means the use of violence and fear tactics to advance a political or ideological agenda. By its nature, it involves threats or use of violence against civilians.
In other words, terrorism targets the innocent. Its goal is to control people through fear, often by killing or threatening large numbers of civilians.
This is an important distinction; whereas civilians are often killed during wars, these deaths tend to be incidental to the war–they are unfortunate, but incidental occurrences.
Wars are not about killing civilians; civilians are caught in the middle of the conflict. Terrorism is all about killing or frightening civilians–it targets them in a way war does not.
As noted above, the Rebel Alliance in Star Wars killed many civilians; and they were probably seen as terrorists by the Empire and those that believed the Empire was trying to keep the peace in the galaxy.
But the Rebels always targeted military or political figures in an effort to cripple the Empire as an institution. Their motives may have been questionable, but they never targeted civilians.
So, from this point of view, it is hard to view the rebels as terrorists. They made mistakes, and their methods were not as noble as their overall cause; but ultimately, they wanted to end oppression and restore freedom to the galaxy–and this is the opposite of terrorism.
Conclusion
War, by its very nature, involves moral gray areas on all sides. The Galactic Civil War in Star Wars is no exception. Though the Rebels are often seen as the good guys, they used troubling methods to accomplish their goals.
That said, they did not intentionally target civilians in an effort to control them or strike fear into them. They were trying to overthrow the Empire, which ruled using fear tactics and violence.
Therefore, the Rebels were freedom fighters, not terrorists.
Sarah Hood is a freelance content writer and editor with a love for all things Star Wars. When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking, singing, and spending time in the great outdoors.