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I've been speaking about nonviolence on this platform for 8 years now. The seven biggest misconceptions people have about violence are as follows:
1. Nonviolence is weakness (violence is strength)
2. Nonviolence depends upon your adversary having a conscience
1. Nonviolence is weakness (violence is strength)
2. Nonviolence depends upon your adversary having a conscience
3. Nonviolence doesn't work, only violence works
4. Adopting nonviolence means dishonoring the sacrifices of those who struggled with arms
5. Nonviolence is a Western construct promoted for the benefit of dictators (!)
4. Adopting nonviolence means dishonoring the sacrifices of those who struggled with arms
5. Nonviolence is a Western construct promoted for the benefit of dictators (!)
6. Nonviolence is a moral statement
7. Nonviolence is what you do when violence an option - so long you can mete out violence there's no need to consider nonviolence
7. Nonviolence is what you do when violence an option - so long you can mete out violence there's no need to consider nonviolence
Quickly answered (you can go through our podcasts for more):
1. Nonviolence is aimed at awakening a population so it realizes its own power and engages directly and personally in the struggle. It also requires immense courage. Facing a tank unarmed vs hiding behind your own tank.
1. Nonviolence is aimed at awakening a population so it realizes its own power and engages directly and personally in the struggle. It also requires immense courage. Facing a tank unarmed vs hiding behind your own tank.
2. Nonviolence doesn't depend upon the favor or conscience of your enemy. It depends upon the resilience, courage, ingenuity, and stubbornness of your own people.
3. That you think nonviolence doesn't work is due to miseducation and not knowing the history of popular movements across the world. There are several empirical studies that show that nonviolence is more effective than violence as a strategy of popular resistance.
4. Adopting nonviolence isn't a statement about how your people chose to struggle in the past. So long you adopt the same goals, you are not dishonoring anyone. You're adopting a more effective strategy to attain their goals.
5. Nonviolence isn't "Western", and doesn't come from Western theories. It's deeply human and is based upon the very human capacity for stubbornness. Also, tyrants love it when you fight them violently - it justifies their own violence (esp in a post War on Terror world).
6. The best arguments to adopt nonviolence aren't moral but purely pragmatic. Nonviolence is simply a better strategy for resistance. You may (rightly) think that it's also more moral, but most people will be convinced by grasping its power, not through purely moral arguments.
7. Nonviolence is simply more effective, impactful, and sustainable than violence, and it works best when it's strategic (not merely tactical). Note that people forego strategy when the think they *can't* win and want to react in a guttural way to prove they're not defeated.
I know that many fellow Palestinians are triggered when I talk about nonviolence. It's been years, I know the drill. Some will deny my identity (even when they're basically living in Chicago with multiple Western passports). Some will call me a traitor, some will just insult me.
Last time I talked about this, I had to endure weeks of almost daily insults in my mentions, in DMs, in FB messages, and even by email. I mean just insults. Not even a single attempt to engage. And I'm here to say, that's fine, there's always a price to pay.
I'm just here to say that being part of the struggle doesn't only mean you have to put your life and liberty on the line. You have to also be prepared for your social standing to take a hit due to your stances. In Arabic we call it التضحية بالجاه. It takes as much courage.
