Swords to Ploughshares : The Social Causes of Violence

Human beings aren’t killing each other as much as we used to. Violent crimes such as murders, rapes, assaults etc. are on a statistical decline, not just in the United States, but on a global average as well. While still far from that ideal utopia mankind dreams of, we have come a long way since the days of World Wars, rampant racism, and wonton infliction of agony. Have we just grown bored of all pillaging and raping? Are we now realizing that violence is not the answer but the problem? Or have men like Mahatma Gandhi and women like Arundhati Roy challenged our intellect and ushered us onto the path of peace? Certain political theorists have been so influential in history that their teachings completely change the course of human destiny and are compelling enough to eclipse the monsters we once were and release the “better angels of our nature”. The idea of non-violence has existed as long as violence has but over the years, we see the core concepts of non-violence emerge. Whether spoken in 20th century India, preached by an African American pastor, or discussed by elderly scholars, three main tenants of non-violence emerge. The analysis of societal causes of violence, reframing of the mentality used to approach violence, and the civil disobedience of oppressed groups are essential to successful non-violent opposition. These three ideas transcend time, race, or society. They are applicable to any struggle in any year by any group of people. While the issues non-violent groups seek to change may vary greatly, only by looking at the violent hegemony around them, changing their mindset and specifically their linguistic approach to violence, and carrying out peaceful civil disobedience can any person hope to change their circumstance...

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...self like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world- ‘No, you move’”. It’s easy to let frustration get the best of you and smash up the windows of business you feel have taken advantage of you. It’s easy to justify the assassination of a person by telling yourself its for the greater good. And it is easy to bomb a whole country back to the stone ages (that they never really moved past) in the name of justice. Organizing and protesting unfair business ethics, tolerating and working with the person you think is the devil incarnated, and putting the sword down for the pen is not easy. Non-violence asks people to adopt the notion that cooperation and peaceful collaboration are human nature, not the evolutionary violence of our cavemen ancestors. There is no aspect of our life, no issue contested, which cannot benefit from the practices of non-violence.