Gene Sharp, "Waging Nonviolent Struggle: 20th Century Practice and 21st Century Potential"

"In a world of many acute conflicts, widespread oppression, and great violence, the technique of nonviolent struggle has considerable potential to be applied with success than ever before in a wide range of situations."

"Waging Nonviolent Struggle" is an in-depth investigation into the power of nonviolent action in various conflicts, and the potential of that power if strategically applied by its participants. The book begins with a brief overview of what is meant by nonviolent struggle (e.g. it has to do with action rather than belief) as well as some misconceptions (e.g. nonviolence does not equate to passivity), how it works against institutions of power, and the various methods, relying greatly on historical instances, of how nonviolent action is and has been practiced. Part two of the book contains historical cases, which Sharp readily admits are examples that were not always successful, not always absent of violence, and often devoid of strategic planning. What these cases provide is an insight into nonviolent struggle in its various forms and against its various opponents, and how these struggles have played out in the past. Part three and four of the book could be said to be the heart of the book, since it provides analysis into the dynamics of nonviolent struggle as well as strategic ways to wage struggle. This book is fascinating in that it provides an academic foundation for study, practice, and future research into how nonviolent struggle can and has been waged, much like one might expect from military science which espouses the methods of violence for engaging in conflicts.

Links:
The Albert Einstein Institution

Citation Information:
Sharp, G. (2005). Waging nonviolent struggle: 20th century practice and 21st century potential. Boston: Extending Horizons Books.

See Also:
Sharp, G. (1973). The politics of nonviolent action, Pt. 1-3. Boston: P. Sargent.

Sharp, G. (2003). From dictatorship to democracy: A conceptual framework for liberation.. Boston: Albert Einstein Institution. (.pdf document)

Howard Zinn, "Howard Zinn on War"

"It seems that once an initial judgment has been made that a war is just, there is a tendency to stop thinking, to assume then that everything done on behalf of victory is morally acceptable."

Howard Zinn, an historian, WWII Veteran, and anti-war activist, compiles writings dealing with war and other humanitarian atrocities throughout our violent history. Through historical research and analysis with a personal perspective keen on uncovering the atrocities of war and violence, the audience is able to look back at history in a different light. One is able to see war without the propaganda and rhetorical justifications that allow us to accept the wholesale killing and destruction of peoples and lands for the greed and profit of those who seek or wish to maintain their power. Some of the more moving moments are when the reader is taken from the perspective of the aggressors into that of the victims, as is the case in his analysis of the bombing of Royan, a catastrophic incident in which Howard Zinn was a bombardier. After reading this brutally revealing collection of essays, one can't help but be moved, perhaps with anger, perhaps with sorrow, hopefully with an urgent sense that war is not a necessary means for all ends.

Citation Information:
Zinn, H. (2001). Howard Zinn on war. New York: Seven Stories Press.

Links:
HowardZinn.org

See Also:
Zinn, H. (1980). A people's history of the United States. New York: Harper & Row.

Zinn, H. (1997). The Zinn reader: Writings on disobedience and democracy. New York: Seven Stories Press.

Johan Galtung and Daisaku Ikeda, "Choose Peace"

"The work for peace needs not not merely a handful of governments or peoples at the top, but all of us."
-Johan Galtung

"All peoples must come to realize and assimilate within themselves the idea of the supreme importance of human life."
-Daisaku Ikeda

"Choose Peace" is dialogue between Daisaku Ikeda, the president of Soka Gakkai International, and Johan Galtung, founder of the International Peace Research Institute. The book, like a long conversation, winds its way through a myriad of topics involving institutions, people, and personal experiences from a transdisciplinary perspective. One of the strong points of this work is that while they are discussing a rather lofty subject, both participants provide very specific solutions to their seemingly utopian vision, such as the restructuring of the United Nations, the reorganization of human settlements into smaller populations, and focusing education toward a curriculum of peace. Although the book is dizzying at times in its breadth, its central theme, peace as work for individuals and societies, never sends the audience adrift. As Galtung states in summing up the book, "The answer is dialoge, inner and outer, among all parties concerned."

Citation Information:
Galtung, J. & Ikeda, D. (1995). Choose peace: A dialogue between Johan Galtung and Daisaku Ikeda. Chicago, IL: Pluto Press.

Links:
TRANSCEND International
International Peace Research Institute, Oslo
Soka Gakkai International

See Also:
Galtung, J. (1996). Peace by peaceful means: Peace and conflict, development and civilization. Oslo: International Peace Research Institute.


Ikeda, D. (2001). For the sake of peace: Seven paths to global harmony, a Buddhist perspective. Santa Monica, CA: Middleway Press.

International Peace Research Institute. (1964). Journal of peace research. Oslo, Norway: Universitetsforlaget.