Becoming better acquainted: Peace activists you want to know, Part 1


Civil Rights March on Washington, D.C. [Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mathew Ahmann in a crowd.] This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication. Author: Rowland Scherman; restored by Adam Cuerden
By Guest Authors Anita McKone and Robert J. Burrowes

Note from Kathie MM: Anita McKone and Robert J. Burrowes are life-long peace and justice advocates. They were  featured in Kathie MM and Tony Marcella’s recent series, dedicated to Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. , on peace activists. Today, Anita and Robert begin a guest series with inspiring stories of Nonviolence Charter  members.

Ella Polyakova is the key figure at Soldiers’ Mothers of Saint-Petersburg in Russia.  In Ella’s words: “When we were creating our organization, we understood that people knew little about their rights, enshrined in Russia’s Constitution, that the concept of ‘human dignity’ had almost disappeared, that no one had been working with the problems of common people, let alone those of conscripts. We clearly understood what a soldier in the Russian army was – a mere cog in the state machine, yet with an assault rifle. We felt how important hope, self-confidence and trust were for every person. At the beginning of our journey, we saw that people around us, as a rule, did not even know what it meant to feel free. It was obvious for us that the path towards freedom and the attainment of dignity was going through enlightenment. Therefore, our organization’s mission is to enlighten people around us. Social work is all about showing, explaining, and proving things to people, it is about convincing them. Having equipped ourselves with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Russia’s Constitution, we started to demolish this dispossession belt between citizens and their rights. It was necessary to make sure that people clearly understood that, having a good knowledge of rights, laws, and situations at hand, they would be able to take responsibility and protect themselves from abuse.”

Lily Thapa is the inspirational founder president, in 1994, of Women for Human Rights, a single women group (WHR) in Nepal. WHR is an NGO “dedicated to creating an active network of single women on a regional, national, and international level.” By working exclusively with and for them, WHR is dedicated to addressing the rights of single women and creating a just and equitable society where the lives of single women are strengthened and empowered. “Rejecting the label “widow”, WHR ‘issued a national declaration to use the term “single women” instead of “widow.” The word ‘widow’ (‘Bidhwa’ in Nepali) carries negativity and disdainful societal views, which leaves many single women feeling humiliated and distressed.” Working to empower women economically, politically, socially, and culturally in order to live dignified lives and enjoy the value of human rights, WHR works at the grassroots, district, regional, national, South Asian, and international levels. Lily has pointed out that there are “285 million single women in the world; among them 115 million fall below the poverty line and 38 million conflict-affected single women have no access to justice; these women are last.” Recently, Lily was awarded the South Asian ‘Dayawati Modi Stree Shakti Samman’, which is “presented annually to a woman who has dared to dream and has the capability to translate that dream into reality.”

Christophe Nyambatsi Mutaka is the key figure at the Groupe Martin Luther King,  which promotes active nonviolence, human rights, and peace. The group is based in Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in central Africa, and focuses particularly on reducing sexual and other violence against women.

 

 

In Pursuit of Peace and Justice: 100 Peace & Justice Leaders and Models

By Anthony J. Marsella and Kathleen Malley-Morrison

Note from Kathie MM: Enjoy this culmination of the quest in which we have engaged the past two weeks to  identify 100 examples of peace and justice leaders, illustrated with enticing and enlightening new charts.

Introduction

26 Jan 2018 – The annual memorial holiday on January 15, 2018, celebrating Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.’s enduring contributions to peace and justice, has passed.

The events of the day linger in our minds, eternally grateful for Reverend King’s efforts to free people and nations from the brutal oppressions imposed by governments, nations, societies, organizations, and individuals, who willfully continue to support and sustain the evils of racism, prejudice, violence, and war.

Reverend King’s commitment to freedom from oppression and abuse compel us to continue his efforts far beyond the words, songs, and promises of his day.

To this end, we, (i.e., Kathie Malley-Morrison & Anthony J. Marsella), the authors of this article, have chosen to demonstrate our responsibilities to continuing the work of Reverend King, by identifying 100 living peace and social justice leaders and models.

The number is arbitrary for there are tens of thousands more who deserve citation. Many are not listed, but will be listed in future efforts. Do not be dismayed! Patience! We believed it essential to create a dynamic list of living peace and justice activists and advocates to encourage peace and justice work.

The individuals included on our list are from all genders, ages, roles.  They are from many nations, ethnocultural groups, and “races.”  We sense a rising tide of commitment to peace and justice, and an intolerance of the corruption, cronyism, and asymmetric power sustaining current abuses.

We consider our efforts a beginning, and we will continue to publish new lists. This is because the struggle for peace and justice is endless, and each day new people are rising to the call.

This is as it should be, and must be, until such time the forces of oppression yield to the forces of good; evil will continue, but human virtue, endowed in conscience will triumph! While the work of many included will be recognized, some of those listed may not be apparent. We have attached website information after each name to offer insight into their efforts.

Before sharing our list, however, we wish to include two charts offering graphic displays of essential material for understanding and appreciating living leaders.

CHART 1: PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF PEACE AND JUSTICE LEADERS AND MODELS

CHART 2: ROLES AND STATUSES OF LIVING PEACE & JUSTICE LEADERS AND MODELS

TABLE 1:

One Hundred Living Peace and Justice Activists, Advocates, Models

  1. Abdul-Jabbar: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
  2. Adams: David Adams
  3. Albertini: James Albertini
  4. Assange: Julian Assange
  5. Atzmon: Gilad Atzmon
  6. Avnery: Uri Avnery
  7. Bacevich: Andrew Bacevich
  8. Baroud: Ramzy Baroud
  9. Benjamin: Medea Benjamin
  10. Berrigan: Frida Berrigan
  11. Binney: William Binney
  12. Blum: Willam Blum
  13. Burrowes: Robert J. Burrowes
  14. Caldicott: Helen Caldicott
  15. Castro: Gustavo Castro
  16. Chiponda: Melania Chiponda
  17. Chomsky: Noam Chomsky
  18. Coates: Ta-Nehisi Coates
  19. Cole: Juan Cole
  20. Cook: Michelle Cook
  21. Dalai: Dalai Lama (Tenzin Gyatso)
  22. Davis: Angela Davis
  23. Ebadi: Shrin Ebadi
  24. Eidelson: Roy Eidelson
  25. Ellsberg: Daniel Ellsberg
  26. Engelhardt: Tom Engelhardt
  27. Falk: Richard Falk
  28. Feeley: Tom Feeley
  29. Fonda: Jane Fonda
  30. Galtung: Johan Galtung
  31. Garza: Alicia Garza
  32. Giroux: Henry A. Giroux
  33. Goodman: Amy Goodman
  34. Gorbachev: Mikhail Gorbachev
  35. Greenwald: Glen Greenwald
  36. Guevara-Rosas: Erika Guevara-Rosas
  37. Haugen: Gary Haugen
  38. Hedges: Chris Hedges
  39. Hersh: Seymour Hersh
  40. Hightower: Jim Hightower
  41. Ikeda: Daisaku Ikeda
  42. Jamail: Dahr Jamail
  43. Jones: Van Jones
  44. Kalayjian: Ani Kalayjian or Ani Kalayjian
  45. Karman: Tawakkol Abdel-Salam Karman
  46. Kelly: Kathy Kelly
  47. Killelea: Steve Killelea
  48. Kiriakou: John Kiriakou   
  49. Klein: Naomi Klein
  50. Knox: Michael Knox 
  51. Koehler: Robert Koehler  
  52. Kohls: Gary G. Kohls 
  53. Lakey: George Lakey
  54. Leonard: Annie Leonard 
  55. Lerner: Rabbi Michael Lerner
  56. Lifton:   Robert Lifton
  57. Lindorff: David Lindorff
  58. Manning: Chelsea Manning
  59. McCoy: Alfred McCoy
  60. McGovern: Ray McGovern 
  61. Maguire: Mairead McGuire  
  62. Menchu: Rigoberto Menchu 
  63. Miles: Stephen Miles
  64. Monbiot: George Monbiot 
  65. Nader: Ralph Nader
  66. Oberg: Jan Oberg 
  67. Okon: Emen Okon  
  68. Ono: Yoko Ono
  69. Peled: Miko Peled
  70. Petras: James Petras
  71. Pilger: John Pilger
  72. Pilisuk: Marc Pilisuk  
  73. Qumsiyeh: Mazin Qumsiyeh
  74. Ragbir: Ravi Ragbir 
  75. Reich: Robert Reich
  76. Risen: James Risen 
  77. Roberts: Paul Craig Roberts 
  78. Rosa: Antonio C. S. Rosa
  79. Roy: Arundhati Roy 
  80. SatyarthriKailash Satyarthi 
  81. Sharpton: Al Sharpton 
  82. Sheehan: Cindy Sheehan
  83. Shoman: Samia Shoman 
  84. Soetoro-Ng: Maya Soetoro-Ng 
  85. Staub: Ervin Staub  
  86. Swanson: David Swanson
  87. Taibibi: Matt Taibibi 
  88. Tamimi: Ahed Tamimi 
  89. Thich: Thích Nhất Hạnh 
  90. Trask: Haunani-Kay Trask 
  91. Turse: Nick Turse  
  92. Tutu: Desmond Tutu 
  93. Vandeman: Mike Vandeman 
  94. Walsh: Dot Walsh
  95. Weir: Alice Weir 
  96. Whitehead: John W. Whitehead
  97. West: Cornel West 
  98. Wilkerson: Colonel Larry Wilkerson
  99. Williams: Jody Williams 
  100. Yousafzai: Malala Yousafzai

This is our continuing contribution to the legacy of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.  His work continues in the lives of those who share his commitments.

______________________________________________

Kathleen Malley-Morrison, Ed.D., Director of the Group on International Perspectives on Governmental Aggression and Peace (GIPGAP), is Professor Emerita of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Boston University. She is the author or coauthor of several books, including Family Violence in a Cultural Perspective, and Family Violence in the United States, as well as editor of the four volume series: State violence and the right to peace: An international survey of the views of ordinary people. She has authored numerous articles and book chapters on violence within relationships and nations. Her current efforts to advance peace and social justice are centered primarily in her blog, Engaging Peace. http://engagingpeace.com. She can be reached at: kathiemm@engagingpeace.com

Anthony J. Marsella, Ph.D., a member of the TRANSCEND Network for Peace Development Environment, is a past president of Psychologists for Social Responsibility, Emeritus Professor of psychology at the University of Hawaii’s Manoa Campus in Honolulu, Hawaii, and past director of the World Health Organization Psychiatric Research Center in Honolulu.  He is known internationally as a pioneer figure in the study of culture and psychopathology who challenged the ethnocentrism and racial biases of many assumptions, theories, and practices in psychology and psychiatry. In more recent years, he has been writing and lecturing on peace and social justice. He has published 21 books and more than 300 articles, tech reports, and popular commentaries. His TMS articles may be accessed HERE and he can be reached at marsella@hawaii.edu.

 

This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 29 Jan 2018.

 

 

Celebrating Reverend Martin Luther King Jr’s Legacy, Part 4

 

Martin Luther King Jr, at a press conference / World Telegram & Sun photo by Walter Albertin, 8 June 1964. No known copyright restrictions

One Hundred Contemporary Exemplars of Peace Advocacy and Activism: The First Fifty

by Kathie Malley-Morrison & Anthony J. Marsella

During this week, while we are honoring one of America’s greatest heroes, a man who personified many of the highest ethical values for which human beings can strive, we want to honor other activists promoting peace, social justice, and preservation of the earth. We are proposing 100 names — 50 today and 50 in the next post — for your consideration.    It is a diverse list–with men and women from a broad range of nations,  a variety of religious faiths, and a rainbow of skin colors.

Some of the names are likely to be familiar to you; others may not be.  You can click on each name to learn about that person and what he or she has done to earn our recognition.  Please send us your own nominations for membership in this group of leaders, with links to sites describing their efforts.

Here are our first 50 names; 

  1.  Abdul-Jabbar: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
  2.  Adams: David Adams
  3. Albertini: James Albertini
  4.  Assange: Julian Assange
  5.  Atzmon: Gilad Atzmon
  6.  Avnery: Uri Avnery
  7.  Bacevich: Andrew Bacevich
  8. Baroud: Ramzy Baroud
  9.  Benjamin: Medea Benjamin
  10.  Berrigan: Frida Berrigan
  11.  Binney: William Binney
  12. Blum: Willam Blum
  13. Burrowes: Robert J. Burrowes
  14. Caldicott: Helen Caldicott
  15. Caputi: Ross Caputi 
  16. Castro: Gustavo Castro
  17. Chiponda: Melania Chiponda
  18. Chomsky: Noam Chomsky
  19. Coates: Ta-Nehisi Coates
  20. Cole: Juan Cole
  21. Cook: Michelle Cook
  22. Dalai: Dalai Lama (Tenzin Gyatso)
  23. Davis: Angela Davis
  24. De Rosa: Antonio de Rosa
  25. Ebadi: Shirin Ebadi
  26. Eidelson: Roy Eidelson
  27. Ellsberg: Daniel Ellsberg
  28. Engelhardt: Tom Engelhardt
  29. Falk: Richard Falk
  30. Feeley: Tom Feeley
  31. Fonda: Jane Fonda
  32. Galtung: Johan Galtung
  33. Garza: Alicia Garza
  34. Giroux: Henry A. Giroux
  35. Goodman: Amy Goodman
  36. Gorbachev: Mikhail Gorbachev
  37. Greenwald: Glen Greenwald
  38. Guevara-Rosas: Erika Guevara-Rosas
  39. Haugen: Gary Haugen
  40. Hedges: Chris Hedges
  41. Hersh: Seymour Hersh
  42. Hightower: Jim Hightower
  43. Ikeda: Daisaku Ikeda
  44. Jamail: Dahr Jamail
  45. Jones: Van Jones
  46. Kalaygian: Ani Kalayjian
  47. Karman: Tawakkol Abdel-Salam Karman
  48. Kelly: Kathy Kelly
  49. Killelea: Steve Killelea
  50. Kiriakou: John Kiriakou   

 

New Year’s Resolution 3: Engaging New Leaders

The four tenets of Leaderful Practice as against the traditional model of leadership. In the public domain. Author: Madhwani Vicky.

By Kathie MM

Selected New Year’s Resolution of the Day: Engage new leaders at every level of the political system.

The country’s government is a mess, has been so for ages , and is getting worse.  That’s why you frequently hear the term “populism” in regard to the last election.

Populist movements act to “disrupt the existing social order by solidifying and mobilizing the animosity of the “commoner” …against “privileged elites” and the “establishment”.[1]

Last year’s populist leader on the right won out over the establishment; the populist leader on the left was shut out by the establishment. And now, income inequality continues to grow, all the evil isms increasingly  contaminate daily life,  environment rape accelerates, and violence spreads its venom into all our lives .

But we’re still here.  Millions of people want greater equality, benevolent justice, environmental protections, nonviolent solutions to conflict—and an end to racialopathy, ethnicopathy, sexopathy, environmentalopathy, and all those other social pathologies plaguing our land.

What will it take to move us in a better direction?

Better leaders. Ethical leaders who will fight for peace and justice—inside as well as outside prevailing political structures.

Consider the image at the beginning of this post.  Does the “leaderful” profile fit your idea of the kind of leader we need?  If not, what characteristics would you seek?

Can you think of anyone in the country today who has the kind of qualities you would want in a leader?

I asked my friend Tony Marsella this question. Here are some of his nominees: Noam Chomsky, Andrew Bacevich, Chris Hedges, Helen Caldicott, Daniel Ellsberg, Rabbi Michael Lerner, Maya Soetoro, Johan Galtung, Robert J. Burrowes.

Who are your nominees for potential leaders who will seek  liberty and justice for all, promote democratic ideals, and act to sustain rather than destroy life on earth?

They’re out there.  Search for them and tell us about them.

And please support engaging peace. You can click here to donate