William James, Mark Twain, I. F. Stone. Emma Goldman, Helen Keller, Molly Ivins. Jim Hightower, John Pilger, William Blum. Lewis Lapham, Michael Parenti, Victor Wallis. Vandana Shiva, Joan Baez, Naomi Klein. Ami Goodman, Abby Martin, Daniel Berrigan.
David Talbot, James Douglass, Thich Nhat Hanh. Oscar Romero, the Dalai Lama, Dan
Ellsberg. And, of course, Chris Hedges, Noam
Chomsky and Howard Zinn. These are just
a few of the torch-bearers of the spirit of Mohandas Gandhi, Martin Luther King
and John Lennon.
Peace is possible.
Progress has been made. Meanwhile,
the struggle continues.
A crisis can be ongoing and deepening for a very long
time. This has been the case with the
USA for forty years at least. 1968 might
well be seen as the pivot point. The
full and fatal swerve toward economic apartheid and the rollback of FDR’s New
Deal began in earnest in 1981 with Reaganomics.
The hammer-blows against social enlightenment have kept the war machine
in full throttle and kept too many Americans in thrall to sloganeering and
sophistry.
The earth groans, bees disappear, and in 2020 the wasteland
grows.
But danger is also opportunity. Breakdown is often breakthrough.
Behind the news there is a global dance. A collective invitation to give peace a
chance.
What is true for the individual is true for the whole. Fate is determined by the choices we
make. Let us use our freedom
wisely. What Kant said at the end of the
18th century is true now: “We live in an age of enlightenment; but
we do not yet live in an enlightened age.”
Perhaps the essence of life really is learning and
service. Siddhartha Gautama, Meister Eckhart
and Thomas Merton thought so. I believe
it too.
Keep the faith, my friend.
We may yet be on the verge of something great. A turning of the civilizational wheel toward
the wisdom of James and Twain and company.
You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.
World Peace Gong National Gandhi Museum. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license
by Andre Sheldon, Director of Global Strategy of Nonviolence
Question:
After Covid-19, in a world divided and fraught with global crises, will people
find a way to work together to create a “new normal” characterized by peace and
justice for all?
Answer:
Yes, with new leadership that speaks truth to power, enlists the people,
and—most importantly–embraces nonviolence, a new normal can be created that
provides a better world….for the children.
Jesus, Buddha, Muhammed, Krishna, Moses, all the
sages through the ages, and Gandhi, King, and Mandela in the past 100 years, lived
and died to teach us that nonviolence is the answer. Are there leaders today who have the ability
to influence the world’s people and all their governments to “commit to
nonviolence?” Yes, there are!
The ideal leader is a person who can see that the
first thing we must do to achieve a more peaceful and just world is unite under
one umbrella. The response to Covid-19 of
countless people confirms that people everywhere see the value of solidarity
and unity. The opportunity is here for
leaders to create a new global peace movement to promote kindness, compassion,
trust, respect, and stopping war!
Leaders and Movements Must Come Together
Naomi Klein and Bill McKibben have highlighted the
dangers and causes of catastrophic climate change, as well as remedies and
strategies to rescue the planet. Klein
and McKibben know we have to unite and think big. Klein wrote,“… strengthening the threads tying together our
various issues and movements – is, I would argue, the most pressing task of
anyone concerned with social and economic justice.” Klein
also wrote: “Sensible people are always telling us that change needs to come in
small increments. Well, we rejected all of that.”
Recognizing the strength of the Golden Rule, religious
scholar Karen Armstrong formed the Charter for Compassion
10 years ago to bring together leaders of all religions. According to the
Charter, “The principle of compassion lies at
the heart of all religious, ethical and spiritual traditions, calling us always
to treat all others as we wish to be treated ourselves.”
Other organizations promoting unity include Global
Citizen, We,
the People, founded by Rick
Ulfick, and ONE,
founded by Bono, is dedicated to
eradicating extreme poverty. World
Humanists , together
with World Without War
(WWW), recently sponsored the second World March for Peace and
Nonviolence to promote the strength of unity for stopping
war. The founder of WWW, Rafael de la Rubia, visualizes
nonviolence as the tool to change the world.
Covid-19 prompted U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to issue a call for a Global Cease-Fire— a critical recognition of the fact
that stopping wars affects all issues and that
we need peace to devote significant efforts to the other crises As Guterres noted,
“It is time to put armed
conflict on lockdown and focus together on the true fight of our lives.”
There are brilliant people leading their
organizations and promoting new ideas that should be in the mainsteam: David
Swanson from World
Beyond War, Margaret
Flowers and Kevin Zeese from Popular
Resistance, Marianne Williamson
and Dennis Kucinich in politics,
and economist Jeffrey Sachs from
Columbia University who has his finger
on the pulse of the world.
Madeleine
Rees,
the Secretary-General of Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) and Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CODEPINK,
in 2015 highlighted their initiative’s slogans at the Geneva II Peace talks to
stop the war in Syria. WILPF’s slogan is
“WOMEN’S POWER to STOP WAR.” CODEPINK’s
slogan is “WOMEN SAY NO TO WAR.” These
slogans highlight the direction to take to sustain and perpetuate the
cease-fire and to create a nonviolent new normal.
Moving Forward
I believe the two individuals who most convincingly
speak truth to power, and show the potential to unite all movements, all religions,
all governors, mayors and community leaders, and all the “people” in every
village, town, and city in every country under one umbrella – nonviolence, are Medea Benjamin and Naomi Klein.
Medea Benjamin can connect all the women’s
organizations and initiatives that have already begun and have practiced mobilizing
— the Women’s
March on Washington, Women
that marched in Jerusalem, Women
that Crossed the DMZ in Korea, Women
in India,
and the #MeToo movement-into
one powerful force. It is time to “harness the energy and power” of women and
nonviolence to create
trust and respect between nations and people!
Naomi Klein can connect all the leaders mentioned above
to join together, to take THE LEAP, to promote
both the climate movement and the peace movement in unison. We need both urgently!
Benjamin and Klein have the knowledge and ability to
create a “CHAIN REACTION” of leaders coming together around the world to begin and
promote a new global peace movement in September 2020! A list of leaders for the chain reaction is
compiled and available for review.
Introducing a Global Movement of Nonviolence, For
the Children
In
2002, the summer after the attacks on 9/11, I began my efforts to stop war
because I believed the United States could have addressed the attack without
using the military. I found that
grassroots initiatives for peace and humanitarian efforts were everywhere, all
trying to unite. Research supported my
theory that women had an advantage for
creating peace
by promoting nonviolence (take away the threat of violence), especially if it
was about protecting the children.
It
is my honor to announce a comprehensive plan for a Global Movement of
Nonviolence (GMofNV), For the Children, led by women. A GMofNV is not just for women, it is
for everyone, as the Civil Rights Movement in the U.S. was for everyone, not
just African Americans. The children are the motivation for everyone
to unite!
The plan is for a GMofNV to be implemented by an
initiative called a CALL to WOMEN, a
World-Wide Unity Campaign.
Non-governmental women leaders will ask women to be the first to rise-up
and unite as the peacemakers. I have
presented a GMofNV to U.N. Secretary-General Guterres for review! A GMofNV includes the largest marketing plan
the world has ever seen.
We
need something different and special because the obstacles to create a nonviolent
new normal are enormous. A GMofNV is designed
to be outside the box but it has tentacles reaching into every part of
society. Historian and activist, Howard Zinn was my
confidante. He wrote to me, “Your ‘Call to Women’ is excellent. Well
written, clear, strong. No doubt women represent nonviolence best.”
A new nonviolent normal will not be easy to attain
and will have risks. We need to create a
new power to change the old; therefore there will be contention. Professor
Marshall Ganz, on NOW,
stated that we need contention. Therefore, we need a peace movement!
We need elections, but we also need a peace movement
because we are in an emergency situation. Mary Robinson, Ban Ki Moon, and Jerry Brown, at the Doomsday Clock Update (see video and Fast Forward to 25:30) highlighted
the world’s crises and asked for action in 2020 because the global crises are so extreme. Also,
experts
are predicting that economic difficulties and potential chaos will
be larger than the world has ever previously experienced. Ban Ki Moon, in a
recent Post by
the Elders, called for a people movement. People movements work, as illustrated by Bill Moyers in his compilation of
different episodes
of NOW.
There will be no life-sustaining new normal if we do
not commit to nonviolence, do not support a cease fire, and do not have a unified
peace movement. Without such a commitment, military spending will take away our
ability to achieve sustainable solutions to problems. Without a peace movement, the climate
movement will fail, which means we failed.
It is time for non-governmental leadership to guide
the people to work together for peace and humanity! All the mechanisms are in place. The opportunity is here now! A GMofNV is one step away from beginning –
enlist peace, social justice, and environmental leaders to promote a GMofNV and
a CALL to WOMEN. The world must promote
clean energy and change to a green economy to provide the basic needs of the
people if peace is to be enduring.
The women leaders cited in this paper can create a unified
peace movement. All the leaders
together, promoting one voice for peace, can move the world along that path,
building on the incredible ideas that exist for a new nonviolent
normal.
Mary Robinson,
the former President of Ireland, former U.N. High Commissioner for Human
Rights, current Chairperson of the Elders, and founder of the Mary Robinson Foundation is a leading
voice in calling for action and unity in 2020.
Robinson stated,“We are faced by a gathering storm
of extinction-level consequences, and time is running out. We cannot continue with business as
usual.”
Every time I promote a GMofNV, it makes me feel
good. We need visionary leaders. The time is now and the plan is ready.
Peace and Love!
Contact: Andre@GlobalStrategyofNonviolence.org
Andre Sheldon began working for peace in 2002 to find solutions other than military action in response to the attacks on September 11, 2001. Andre is a member of Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), National Organization of Women (NOW), follows CODEPINK, and is an Honorary Co-founder of the Library of Peace in Atlanta, GA. He is founder and director of the Global Strategy of Nonviolence, which was formed to promote a new narrative of committing to nonviolence and committing to helping others. He has tirelessly networked with non-governmental women leaders from around the world to set in motion a new global peace movement.
“Unlike their predecessors on the mat,” writes Eidelson, “today’s Legion of Doom don’t rely on brute strength and frightening visages to subdue opponents. Rather, their seeming stranglehold on our politics comes from the bottomless wealth of the self-serving 1% and from the use of manipulative narratives.” (Image: Wrestlefest/Screengrab)
by Roy Eidelson
In professional wrestling circles, the “Legion of Doom” is a name that conjures up the fearsome physiques and painted faces of one of the great tag teams of all time. In the political arena today, the same moniker aptly describes an even more daunting and dangerous duo: the profits-over-people corporate wing of the Democratic Party and the belligerent, bigoted, and brutal GOP of Donald Trump. There’s really no better way to describe a pairing that literally imperils our democracy and our planet at the same time.
The foundation for this forbidding alliance—”bipartisanship” at its worst—is simple. Both of these powerhouses are beholden to the same benefactors: an assortment of status-quo-defending behemoths that includes Wall Street, the oil and gas industry, health insurance companies, Big Pharma, military contractors, and mainstream media conglomerates. They therefore share the same no-holds-barred commitment: making sure that progressive victories are few and far between.
Of course, unlike their predecessors on the mat, today’s Legion of Doom don’t rely on brute strength and frightening visages to subdue opponents. Rather, their seeming stranglehold on our politics comes from the bottomless wealth of the self-serving 1% and from the use of manipulative narratives—”political mind games”—designed to mislead us about what’s happening, what’s right, and what’s possible.
“Both of these powerhouses are beholden to the same benefactors: an assortment of status-quo-defending behemoths that includes Wall Street, the oil and gas industry, health insurance companies, Big Pharma, military contractors, and mainstream media conglomerates. They therefore share the same no-holds-barred commitment: making sure that progressive victories are few and far between.”
As a psychologist, I’ve studied these propaganda appeals. The ones that tend to be most effective in confusing and misdirecting us target five core concerns that govern how we make sense of the world—namely, issues of vulnerability, injustice, distrust, superiority, and helplessness. Each is linked to a basic question, like this.
First, are we safe? The Legion of Doom are ready with the answers that best serve their corporate backers. Sometimes that means fearmongering about how progressive policies will threaten our wellbeing. Encouraging panic over Medicare for All fits the bill—even though tens of millions of Americans lack the health insurance they need. At other times, they instead offer unfounded assurances to allay our legitimate fears. Thus, they falsely insist—contrary to scientific data—that the destructive consequences of climate change are overblown and no cause for alarm.
Second, are we being treated fairly? Here the Legion of Doom are quick to prey on our uncertainties about right and wrong. One frequent ploy revolves around disingenuous claims that they’re fighting for justice. Corporate school reformers become ultra-wealthy entrepreneurs by promising to help underprivileged children, and massive defense contractors fill their coffers by posing as defenders of human rights. Another ploy involves misleading arguments in which shameful injustices—unconscionably extreme inequality, astronomical CEO salaries—are portrayed as the just outcomes of so-called free markets.
Third, who should we trust? Our doubts in this arena are soft targets for the Legion of Doom’s manipulative appeals. So they tell us that particular groups—perhaps communities of color, or immigrants, or those who are poor—are “different” and that their grievances are best viewed with suspicion. And they warn us that progressives and other critics of the status quo are purportedly dishonest, misguided, or misinformed—despite overwhelming evidence that the current system rewards the few by depriving the many.
Fourth, are we good enough? Often the Legion of Doom aim to win our loyalty with deceitful declarations that everyone benefits from the greed-driven pursuits they present as high-minded endeavors. They defend health insurance giants with false notions of protecting “choice,” and they promote anti-labor “right to work” laws with cunning tributes to “freedom.” At the same time, they depict dissenters as unappreciative and “un-American”—even though alternative policies like Medicare for All and a Green New Deal are broadly popular and would improve countless lives.
And fifth, can we control what happens to us? Here the Legion of Doom turn our concerns about helplessness to their advantage. Sometimes they duplicitously insist that transformative changes—a living wage for all, an end to homelessness, healthcare as a human right—are pipe dreams impossible to achieve due to unconquerable forces. At other times, they instead warn us that a progressive agenda will jeopardize our autonomy, as though returning power to the people would be a step away from—rather than toward—greater democracy.
All of these manipulative mind games (and more) are central to the Legion of Doom’s 2020 electoral strategy. Establishment Democrats have already unleashed them in an effort to undermine progressive primary candidates at every level—most notably against Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont. If he and others nonetheless emerge victorious, the GOP is patiently waiting its turn before November’s general election. They’re ready with a second barrage of these propaganda ploys, all aimed at wrestling our hopes for meaningful change into submission.
But another round of potentially catastrophic Legion of Doom victories doesn’t have to be our destiny. This status-quo-defending, donkey-and-elephant tag team—committed to continued self-aggrandizement rather than solidarity with those who have less—can be defeated. First, by resisting and debunking their misleading appeals, and by helping others to do the same. Second, by offering an honest and compelling alternative narrative, one with the straightforward message that insecurity, mistreatment, and crushed aspirations shouldn’t be a routine part of so many lives. And third, by building a coalition of Americans that’s large enough, diverse enough, and fearless enough to show the Legion of Doom that their domination of our politics is over. As Bernie Sanders said at a recent debate, quoting Nelson Mandela, “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”
Roy Eidelson is the former executive director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Solomon Asch Center for Study of Ethnopolitical Conflict, and a past president of Psychologists for Social Responsibility. His latest book is Political Mind Games: How the 1% Manipulate Our Understanding of What’s Happening, What’s Right, and What’s Possible.
This essay was first published on Common Dreams Views, Tuesday, March 03, 2020. Work published on Common Dreams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License. Feel free to republish and share widely.
