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Nonviolent Response

In Quakerism 101 we were talking about the different Testimonies that the Quakers hold dear:

Simplicity, Peace, Integrity, Community and Equality

This led into an activity dealing with violence. There were four quadrants:
Violent/OK
Violent/Not OK
Non-Violent/OK
Non-Violent/Not OK

The leader proposed a scenario, and we were to stand in the quadrant that corresponded with the situation.

1. You shoot a duck during hunting season.

This one was split pretty evenly between Violent/OK and Violent/Not OK with a large number of fence sitters. The rational for the Not OK folks was that many of them didn't eat meat, so for them to shoot a duck would be just for sport.

One person saw this as a non-violent/OK act. He saw it as part of the circle of life. I disagreed with his position in that I see the circle of life as being naturally violent-- not maleveolently so, but nature is not a pacifist.

2. Someone is trying to mug you; you knock them down and run away.

I was surprised at the number of people who classified this as non-violent/OK. How is pushing someone down NOT a violent response? If asked to come up with a non-violent reaction to a mugging, knocking someone over wouldn't be tops on my list.

The majority was in the Violent/OK side. One lone voice said it was violent and not OK.

3. There is an armed burglar in your home. You shoot him in self-defense.

This nearly came to blows. People felt very passionately about where they stood and believed they needed to convert the other side to the correct way.

From the Violent/Okay side: I have four kids; he's threatening my family. I have no choice. It's him or me. He forced this on himself. It was in self defense.

From the Violent/Not OK side: What am I doing with a gun in the first place? What if I shoot one of my four kids accidentally? We told you you needed to spend more time at the shooting range! There is always a choice. Aren't all shootings "in self defense?"

4. Your neighbor has an army recruiting bumper sticker. You write "work for peace" on it in permanent marker.

Here I got very very irritated with the people who called this a Violent/Not OK act. Some of them were the same ones who saw pushing someone down as non-violent. WHAT? Writing something is more violent than knocking someone over?

Those of us on the correct side saw this as a non-violent, not OK act and tried in vain to pursuade the others that it wasn't a violent act, it was just very not OK. But they insisted it was violent. As is calling someone "stupid." As is verbal abuse.

There is gets kind of gray for me. I believe you can be verbally violent. But the written word just doesn't have the same wallop for me.

posted by Kiara at 6:35 PM