[Note from Kathie Malley-Morrison: Today we welcome guest author Jean Gerard, a long-term Quaker pacifist and activist, who worked for the Nuclear Freeze Movement, Women Strike for Peace, and Sane, among other anti-war and pro-peace activities. This is the first of several posts containing her reflections on current and historical trends in peace activism.]
Over a period of little more than a year, several national movements in the Middle East have succeeded in displacing dictators, bringing one into an international court of justice. In other nations authoritarian resistance has been more invulnerable.
The ultimate results are not yet clear as protests by millions continue in spite of great loss of life.
“Occupy Wall Street” was undoubtedly encouraged by these massive protests of young jobless Middle Eastern revolutionists. Beginning first in New York City, Occupy Wall Street spread rapidly across the country – “occupying” many public spaces from coast to coast.
As winter weather made camping outdoors more difficult and groups living temporarily in public spaces were ousted by police forces, the movement has temporarily fallen out of media attention, but is still functioning in a reflective mode, waiting for spring.
General “liberal” opinion is that the movement will re-emerge better organized and focused. I, like many others, wait with desperate anticipation, for I am deeply engaged in its success.
Most of my life I have worked for peace and justice causes. I taught college classes in both California and Japan, and tried to prod students into learning about and understanding the world and its many problems.
Despite efforts by teachers and community organizers everywhere, the problems have seemed to worsen and we see too little evidence of positive change. Over-population, rapid technological development, environmental hazards, successive wars one after another, and lagging support for public education have continued for so long that problems have blown up in all our faces.
Even the smallest and most remote of human groups are now brought so close together that they are drawn into conflict faster than they can understand what is happening.
