First off, since when did peace become uncool? No Seriously!, we’ve got a crop of young activists who almost snicker at the word, as if that’s some amorphous realm of irrelevant hippyness.
What’s so wrong with peace as a motivation for the social justice movement?
Let me break it down for everyone.
In my unfortunately many years as an activist (and I say unfortunate because I’m still having to go out on the streets for issues such as land claims which should have been solved frakken years ago!), I have learned that there is a difference in motivation between a community rising up like a pride of lions to defend itself and the kind of acting-out activism of “you’ve hurt me so now I’m going to hurt you back!”.
Acting out from that place of pain without wisdom/strategy becomes an almost tit-for-tat, endless battle between the oppressors and the oppressed and does little to actually build a revolution.
And frankly, I don’t want to be at war forever. I want peace. I want victory, I don’t want endless battles. Even if not for me, but for future generations. Which I why I note that wisdom and strategy are the keys to any successful social justice movement, and they also make for the largest and most tightly knit.
Again I’m in it to win. Not just to fight. But to win. Actually, I’m in it for the dismantling of all forms of oppression. Therefore, I’m in it for peace.
There is no such thing as a revolution of one/army of one. These concepts don’t exist because they betray the notion of a community of resistance and the motivation of a community standing up for itself. And this place of power does not come from an individual, isolated hurt but from a place of self-respect, community empowerment and ability to join in global solidarity with others.
It is the wisdom of “never-again” or “Ya Basta/Enough!” that is educated by personal, familiar and communal history; of respecting your people, your present family and community, your future generations and your global influence.
I’m not saying that this is an easy task, far from it, I’ve got my own angry hurt that I frankly cope with every day. And sometimes that hurt makes me want to act out in exactly that “you hurt me so now I’m going to hurt you” pain. I’ve been there.
But if the Hermetic axiom is true: As above, also below, I have to search for the inner warrior in me before I can step out onto the streets. It is a great skill to be able transform isolating, crippling feelings of hate (the “you hurt me so I’m gonna hurt you back” acting out-activism) into a wisdom drawn from experience, based in both personal courage and the beautiful force of a community rising up.
In fact, I don’t even like the word “protest”. I prefer the French “manifestation” or the English “demonstration”.
The term manifestation/demonstration is defined as, “outward or perceptible indication”
For example, we the people do not agree with the G8/G20 Summit agenda and will we rise up as a physical demonstration, which is our right under a democracy. Our reaction – whatever form that may take on July 25-27, 2010 – is visual proof that no government (including Canada) can legitimately claim it is acting on behalf on all its citizens and/or we are complicit in its actions.
To all communities of resistance, rise up like a pride of lions!
For more information about warriors fighting to not have to fight anymore, please see:
U.S. War Resisters: Warriors with Conscience
*Thank you to my elder, Rocky, for his guidance on this topic.
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