I read an article the other day that upset me- an anonymous character sent a letter to the White House with the intent to poison the President- Donald Trump. I am not a fan of the current administration, the many of the people our president has aligned with, and the political beliefs of President Trump. I will not stand for the idea that people think it is ever okay to outright attempt to harm anyone who you have opposing opinions too. This has historically been a problem in this country- such as is the case with the CNN mail bomb, the shooting of Martin Luther King, and the shootings conducted by Christopher Dorner, to name a few incidents. Why does anyone think this is ok? That you should respond to someone’s opinions and actions with outright violence? My theory is that these people consider the actions of those they victimize to be equivalent to their actions. But even if that were the case, to choose your course of action to inflict pain? That should not only be morally denounced but ethically. In Hinduism, they teach that the best way to confront someone is non-violently so that any action or inaction by the opposed group can be measured against one’s non-violent confrontation. Anger shouldn’t be the first emotion we reach towards to voice our concerns, and I am concerned that with escalating opinions, and in a much more divisive era this sort of behavior is becoming normalized. In the worst case, this sort of confrontation could lead to another World War, but I say let us work to remove this ideology from society. Look at the examples set by the Extinction Rebellion, the School strike for climate, the Black Lives Matter protest (initially), and the Jeans Revolution in Belarus. Let us teach the next generation that the wars and actions of the past shouldn’t be glorified, and push citizens to think more critically of their actions.
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Hi Prahalad,
I definitely share your concerns about the widespread normalization of violence as an acceptable means of political advocacy. The tensions within the country are already extraordinary: a single, horrifying death might be all that it takes to ignite massive unrest. Protests and counter-protests are continuing, and as thousands flock to battle in American cities, the likelihood of mass violence skyrockets.
The unfortunate irony is that the violence actually hurts the social movements themselves, which prevents positive change from being enacted. Support for BLM protests had reached 54% earlier in the year, but after several dozen deaths resulting directly from the unrest, support has dwindled to 39%. https://apnews.com/article/breonna-taylor-race-and-ethnicity-shootings-police-new-york-24af876f135f529d95c9c857ad9aaa0e
Most of the enduring changes in society have been carried out peacefully; violent transitions have almost inevitably resulted in more violence, and they tend to be undone more quickly, because their legitimacy is based on force rather than consent. I worry that with civil unrest still continuing from June, the contested election this November will increase tensions a hundredfold. India’s Hindu values of non-violence set it free from British colonial rule and helped break apart the ancient caste system. Hopefully America can take note of this.