Nonviolence and Civil Disobedience (Working Group)

Statement of Purpose

The Nonviolence and Civil Disobedience Working Group supports the spirit of nonviolence that underlies Occupy Boston through personal, strategic and collective approaches to nonviolence. The Working Group is a resource and part of the network for practices, discussions, trainings on what it means to be nonviolent, modes of civil disobedience, creating community and how philosophies of nonviolence in the tradition of Barbara Deming, Martin Luther King and Gandhi may be practiced by Occupy Boston.

Philosophy and Approach

Based on Martin Luther King Jr.'s 6 principles of nonviolence.

First,nonviolence is resistance to evil and oppression. It is a human way to fight.

Second, it does not seek to defeat or humiliate the opponent, but to win his/her friendship and understanding.

Third, the nonviolent method is an attack on the forces of evil rather than against persons doing evil. It seeks to defeat the evil and not the persons doing the evil and injustice.

Fourth, it is the willingness to accept suffering without retaliation.

Fifth, a nonviolent resister avoids both external physical and internal spiritual violence -- not only refuses to shoot, but also to hate, an opponent. The ethic of real love is at the center of nonviolence.

Sixth, the believer in nonviolence has a deep faith in the future and the forces in the universe are seen to be on the side of justice.

Workshops

*October 29, 2011: FSU Workshop: The Practice of Nonviolence and Civil Disobedience, 10:00 AM - 12:30 PM. Meet at Gandhi statue, class held in Dewey Square plaza.

This workshop is both philosophical and practical and attempts to equip us with the skills necessary to engage in courageous acts of non-violent civil disobedience. The philosophical perspective explores why we engage in CD and use a non-violent approach. The practical perspective explains how to engage in CD non-violently. Gandhi talked about a truth force. He believed to act and think non-violently is not something we do only during an action, but in every step of every day.

We will discuss briefly a history of non-violence and CD. We will talk about what is violence, why non-violence, and why civil disobedience. How to respond non-violently to violence, how to practice non-violence, listening skills, and de-escalation of violent situations will also be addressed. We will learn skills to stay calm in stressful situations. I have some legal experience with these situations, but that is not the focus of this workshop.

Rick Colbath-Hess, LICSW, has been a labor and human rights activist for many years, working on many grass roots campaigns in the labor, Palestinian rights and human rights movements. He is an adjunct faculty member teaching courses in leadership, grass roots politics, and community organizing at the College of Public and Community Service at UMass Boston. He has received many awards for his work, including a Peace and Justice Award from the City of Cambridge.

*October 22, 2011: FSU Workshop: The Practice of Nonviolence and Civil Disobedience, 2:00 - 4:30 PM.

*October 19, 2011: The Practice of Nonviolence and Civil Disobedience, 1:00 - 3:30 PM.