Therefore, the people always maintain the (natural) right to overthrow any state authority that fails to act in the best interest of the people or that excuses itself from respecting the natural rights of the populace (Taylor, 1999).

The fundamental principles underlying Locke's theory of social contract and civil government are that (1) the primary purpose of state legislative authority is to ensure the protection of the natural rights of everyone in society and (2) the failure of holders of state judicial, legislative, and executive authority to uphold the obligations granted to them under social contracts is an outright breach of those contracts, justifying their recession, and the overthrow of unjust state authority, such as witnessed in England in 1688 (Taylor, 1999).

Parallels to Contemporary American Justice:

The most obvious parallels between Locke's theory of social contract and contemporary concepts of American justice is evidenced by Locke's articulation of natural...
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