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This month's article......November 2003 Not long ago a reporter asked me whether it is more difficult to be a peacemaker now than it was in 1982 when this Center began its work. It's a question I had never been asked, and I had to think about it a little before I responded. The question has stayed with me, and I've thought about it a lot since my reply that day. In 1982 our country was engaged in the "Cold War." My children, in elementary school, were playing the "Russians Against the Americans" in the back yard, along with their neighborhood playmates and their school friends. They all were afraid they would die in a nuclear war. It was impossible, at that time, to talk about peace or peacemaking in a public school and in many other public, workplace, and social environments. Anyone who spoke in those terms was immediately called a "Commie," or worse. Today people are afraid of dying in a terrorist attack. Those who talk about peace or peacemaking in international contexts frequently find themselves labeled "un-American," "unpatriotic" or other equally demeaning terms. Now it's my grandchildren and their friends at school and in the neighborhood who are afraid. That much hasn't changed. But some things have changed. Teaching peacemaking is not harder, I think, but it is different. When we held our first summer peace school in 1982, children had a keen understanding of what people need in order to live in peace, but they had no idea what steps to take to make that happen--not even a way to work out their own quarrels peaceably. In Peace Schools and other program areas we focused much attention on international issues. In the middle years of the Center's life, our attention turned to violence in the community. For a time, the world seemed a little safer--at least as most American perceived it. International conflict did not disappear and even grew more devastating in the 1990's, but except for the First Gulf War, many peacemakers focused on the issues closer to home. We thought about gang violence, school shootings, and worked more in community settings for teaching the skills for peacemaking. In Ohio we worked along with others to address the need for peacemaking and dispute resolution education in public schools. Some of us worked on issues of economic violence--sweatshops around the world and unjust working conditions in our own country. With the events of September 11, 2001, American concerns with community violence and international violence came together in a new way. Today we perceive different enemies in our neighborhoods and in the world. We disagree about ways to resolve the bitter international conflicts that seem only to get worse. As many neighborhoods become more diverse, community suspicions, misunderstandings, and mistrust lead to violence of all sorts, in private and public contexts. Fears of terrorism have changed the work of the peacemaker in that we have had to learn more about other faiths, other cultures, other perspectives. We have had to pay attention to international peacemaking in our own towns. We have had to learn new skills ourselves, in order to teach new skills to others. I can rejoice that today, all over Ohio and across the US and around the world, there are children who attend schools in which both students and adults talk about peaceable classrooms, peaceable schools, and who learn and practice skills to make those dreams into reality. I can also rejoice at the new generations of peacemakers who will take up the work in this century, many with college and university degrees in international relations, mediation and dispute resolution, and peace studies. When I remember the stories of people who have been peacemakers through centuries, including the conscientious objectors in all our wars, those who died in the on-going struggle for racial justice, and so many more, I can't say I think peacemaking is harder today. It has never been easy, and I guess it will not get easier any time soon. It's just different. QueryIs peacemaking harder now that it was 20 years ago?
Calendar Items of NoteJanuary 30 and 31, 2004: "School Conflict Management Training: A Comprehensive Approach to Resolving Conflicts in Schools," Riffe Center, Columbus. (13 hours. Graduate credit available from Ashland University) February 28, 2004: "How to Deliver School Conflict Management Staff Development Workshops for Your School," Riffe Center, Columbus. Registration limited to those who have attended a 2 or 3-day school conflict management training sponsored by the Ohio Commission on Dispute Resolution and Conflict Management. May 5-8: "What Works! Innovations in Conflict Resolution Education: Early Childhood to Higher Education," a national conference sponsored by the Ohio Commission on Dispute Resolution and Conflict Management, the Interfaith Center for Peace, the Association for Conflict Resolution, and the Ohio Resource Network (Safe School Center). Riffe Center and Statehouse Atrium, Columbus. Report for OctoberOctober 10: "Managing Conflict on the School Bus: A Seminar for Drivers." Crestview Schools, Columbiana, Ohio October 14-18: Annual Conference of the Association for Conflict Resolution Conference, Orlando, FL. Madeleine Trichel, Jo Davis, and Lauren McGarity presented a 3-hour workshop on October 15. Topic: "Implications of Brain Research for the Field of Conflict Resolution." Madeleine will facilitated a panel presentation on
October 20 and 27: Marion Correctional Institution, Horizon Interfaith #4. October 21: "Managing Your Feelings" workshop. Center for New Directions, Brown-Bag Lunch series for Women, Columbus October 22: Health Educators' Institute. Workshop on Conflict Resolution in Health Care Settings. Salt Fork Lodge, Cambridge, Ohio. 4:00-5:30 pm |