Nonviolence In Practice
April 2005
Banner photo: ©SEKAI BUNKA PHOTO
Nonviolence Education for Youth
The world seems to be growing increasingly violent. As a peace educator I believe that if we want people to behave less violently, we have to teach the knowledge, skills and attitudes of nonviolence. Human beings are extremely diverse in their thinking as well as their being. The issue isn't whether or not there will be conflict but how individuals handle difference: difference of opinion, belief, background and culture, etc. Active nonviolence is concerned with everyone's well-being.
Youth should know what their rights are and recognize that, as global citizens, with their rights come responsibilities to and for the welfare of others in the world. They also need to learn the conflict resolution skills, knowledge and attitudes that will help them move beyond merely tolerating others to valuing the differences as well as the similarities between themselves and others. With these new skills they will be able to positively manage the conflicts that occur as a natural part of life and know that violence is not inevitable and that there are nonviolent alternatives. They will then begin to see themselves as positive agents for change.
Peace education believes that everything in the world is interrelated or interconnected. Likewise, nonviolence is about acting as well as reflecting. Nonviolence is about personal as well as societal transformation. As Gandhi said, "We must be the change we wish to see in the world." In 2003-04 I was the project coordinator of a youth anti-bias leadership pilot project which included a six-week intensive peace education internship training. The young people, ages 15 to 19, came from the five boroughs of New York City.
Real Changes
At the end of the six-week internship the youth expressed an overall increase in appreciation of other as well as their own faiths and ethnicities, valuing both the similarities and the differences. They also conveyed a real interest in meeting and interacting with more people of diverse cultures and backgrounds. They wrote about a greater awareness of the dangers of stereotyping and prejudging, the importance of asking questions and seeking to understand. This involved the capacity to listen to understand as opposed to listening to respond. Another related skill learned was to speak up and be heard both as an advocate for others and for themselves. They said this was related in part to having had the opportunity to meet and interact with many different kinds of people from here in the United States and abroad. The topics covered during the internship combined with meeting so many people made global issues relevant, and they could make connections to their own experience.
Others described the results of newly developed self-reflection skills as increased self-reliance and self-esteem. Rather than look to others (parents, teachers, peers) for the answers, they began to look within themselves and trust their feelings and ideas. There was also a new understanding of how an individual's behavior can positively or negatively influence an interaction or situation. Knowing how to nonviolently decrease conflict in a situation is empowering and an essential of peacemaking. So is developing multiple perspectives, knowing that there is more than one way to get things done. The ability to "think out of the box" requires imagination, problem-solving skills, and a willingness to collaborate with others toward a common goal.
This was for several of them the first time that they felt that they could be effective in making positive change. Through nonviolence and peace training like this young people come to appreciate that although so many of the problems in society seem overwhelming, each one of us has the power to take action to create change.
Jill Strauss is Nonviolence Education Coordinator at The Temple of Understanding, a global interfaith NGO. Jill writes peace education curricula and has been actively involved in Middle East coexistence and interfaith/interethnic relations.
