Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Creating Nonviolent Solutions

I am always saying that, as Black people, we have enormous power, but we don’t use the power that we have.

I am sure that, like me, you were shocked and sickened by the recent attack on a soldier in Woolwich, South London. And my heart goes out to the family of the victim, and to the families of the attackers. I think they must have been very disturbed people. And they must have been very frustrated by the injustices they have seen.

In the end, we have to decide what kind of world we really want to live in.

I agree that the attacks on innocent men, women and children are horrific, and many, although not all, of them have been on people in Muslim countries. And as we know, African people and African countries have been under attack for many years and for many generations. So this is not about religion, as I see it, this is about the kind of brutality that human beings inflict upon one another.

But in the end, we have to decide what kind of world we live in. We can give in to these impulses to inflict violence on others, or we can choose a peaceful solution. And there are peaceful solutions. Practical solutions. This is what I have written about in SuccessStrategies for Black People. There are many ways to find peaceful, practical, nonviolent solutions.

It’s up to us. It’s up to you and me. Do we want our children to grow up in a world of fear and hatred? I know that is not my plan for the future.

We have enormous power. We need to use the power we have to create the kind of world we want to live in, and the kind of world we want our children to live in.
We can transform these situations. We can create a better world.

See also: Your Inner Wisdom.

2 comments:

Nubiagirl said...

Your blog has a beautiful and hopeful message. However, I would like to see more on exactly how you propose to turn a violent situation, like the one we have seen on the news, into a nonviolent one. What would you suggest one do when confronted by a man with a machete?

Zhana21 said...

Thanks very much for your comments. I am glad you enjoyed the blog post.

People have transformed very violent confrontations using some of these methods. I knew someone personally who transformed a situation in which someone intended to rob him violently.

You appear to be asking for information. If you refer to the book, particularly chapters 11 and 17, you will find the information there.