We all personally have times when we lose faith in humanity, and there are times when we feel that loss of faith as communities. The UW-Stout community has recently been given reason to doubt humanity. Hussain Saeed Alnahdi, a Saudi Arabian student, was beaten up and later died of his injuries. When I write this article, a suspect has been identified, but that is all the known information. Whatever motivated the crime, it’s an act of senseless and tragic violence. Not only is Hussain’s death a tragedy, the impact it’s had on campus is nightmarish. Students have been responding in incredibly positive ways, but the way students are feeling distresses me. Many people are feeling less safe than in the past; this seems to be felt especially among foreign exchange students and non-white students. I can’t begin to imagine what it might feel like to feel targeted for your nationality or skin color.
This article isn’t just for Stout students. A lot of people are finding themselves questioning their values in comparison to the values of our country as we process the results of this presidential election. If you’re one of the people that feels dismal, confused, disappointed, etc. when thinking about the election, remember the good things about the world around you. When I say that I mean that, finding good things around you does not ean you shouldn’t stand up for what you believe in. You should. But I feel that it requires at least a bit of hope to bring about change. If someone is completely in despair about the election (or anything else) that means they don’t believe anything can be done to remedy the situation, or at least alter it. There always needs to be hope, and in some ways, I find that’s connected with the faith we have in our fellow man.
But the title of this article is remembering the good in the world. After a tragedy, or other circumstance that shakes our trust in humanity, seeing the good things around us can feel like a surprise. A few days after Alnahdi’s death I happened upon a day-long seminar about Kingian Nonviolence. It had been planned weeks in advance, and for me, the fact that it was in response to everyday life, not this specific tragedy, restored my faith in humanity. I had seen the great things so many of my peers were doing, but sitting in on this seminar for a while was different. It reminded me that there are always people who are hoping to make the world a better place. There are always individuals among those people who are ready to work to make change, and lead others in the process.
One of those groups of people hoping to lead others in change is Stout Students Unite, or SSU. SSU started in the fall semester of 2015, so is a quite new organization. They were holding a Kingian Nonviolence seminar because their organization is based on the six principles of Kingian Nonviolence. Along with those principles, SSU also works to promote equality, unity, and solidarity. President Briana Killgore feels that the Stout campus needs more of all the things SSU has in their core values. Some SSU members are pictured below at the Kingian Nonviolence Training (photo credit to the organization).
Most people know the name Martin Luther King Jr., but the fact that his practice of nonviolence was named and created into something to study is lesser known. SSU President Killgore says that “Kingian Nonviolence and Martin Luther King Jr.’s methods appeal to us because its history proves to us that nonviolence is more powerful than violence. We also believe in MLK’s six Principles of Nonviolence because they were formed through eclectic thinking after he studied Mahatma Gandhi, Henry Thoreau, Thomas Carlyle, and many other influential scholars.” In a society that has seen a lot of division and protest, King’s principles are important to keep in mind.
If we look at the 6 Principles of Nonviolence put forth by Martin Luther King Jr., we see a model for living.
- Nonviolence is a way of life for courageous people.
- The Beloved Community is the framework for the future.
- Attack forces of evil, not persons doing evil.
- Accept suffering without retaliation for the sake of the cause to achieve the goal.
- Avoid internal violence of the spirit as well as external physical violence.
- The universe is on the side of justice.
To me, these principles not only provide guidelines for how to live a life of nonviolence, but encouragement for doing so. Apply these to the world around us today. Does that help give you a better picture of what you can do as an individual or part of a group to stand against something you think is wrong? There are many ways to make change, but sometimes the hardest thing is knowing where to start, and how you as one individual can make a difference. Even something that feels small is better than standing idly by.
Jim Handley, UW Stout Senior Lecturer of Peace Studies and Geography, is SSU’s adviser. He led the development of Stout’s Peace Studies program and feels very strongly about taking action to make the world a better place. “I believe that once you identify injustice you have a moral responsibility to attack it,” Handley says. “Through exploration of ideas, philosophies, and strategies, I came to realization that the active, forceful nonviolence taught by Martin Luther King Jr. was the most effective tool to change social conditions.”
You may be thinking you want to bring about positive change in the world but are unsure about how to begin. SSU president Briana and adviser Jim Handley offer their advice on how to get started making change.
“All people who fight against the norm will encounter difficulties,” Briana states. “The more you learn about nonviolence and how effective it can be when applied to everyday life, the less troubling encounters will be when you stand up for what is right.” All Stout students are encouraged to attend SSU meetings, which are at 7 p.m. on Thursdays and held in the Willow Walnut rooms of the MSC.
Jim Handley’s advice comes in multiple steps. “The first thing I’d suggest is to model anti-racist, anti-homophobe, and anti-sexist behavior. Our actions speak 1,000 times louder than our words. Let’s acknowledge that racism, homophobia, sexism, and Islamophobia all exist on our campus and in our community. If you are not actively fighting against those things, you are part of the problem,” he says. “If you see someone being discriminated against because of their identity, do something. It could be something as simple as asking if someone is okay. If you see someone that seems uncomfortable, just standing next to them and letting them know you are ‘with’ them can make a huge difference. If you’re not sure how you can help, ask how you can help. It’s always the time to do right.”
Handley also suggests we get to know people with different identities from ourselves. This helps us figure out how the people we want to support can be helped, and what support they might want. Meeting people different from ourselves also helps us pay attention to our own biases, something that is particularly important in being an ally. Handley notes that we each hold our own biases, and we shouldn’t be ashamed of this. “Maybe you have never been around someone with a particular identity but you’ve developed certain perceptions or attitudes about them. There’s no shame in that. But it’s important for you to understand where you’re at before you put yourself out there too far as an ally. Ask yourself how you developed those perceptions and challenge them.” Part of this is realizing that our biases are learned and part of our social structure. “We’re not born racist. We learn racism. Try to see racists as victims of their own social conditions. MLK taught us to attack the forces of evil, not the persons doing the evil. Attack the ignorance by educating people. Attack the hate with love.”
Briana also mentioned we should not blame people who oppress others. “The goal of nonviolence is not to dismiss or oppress those who are oppressing, but rather use nonviolence to enlighten and show them agape love so that we may all coincide peacefully.” Agape love is based on a Greek term (agape) which is described as love that seeks good for a neighbor instead of itself.
It’s easy to get down about what’s going on around us because there’s so much pain in the world. The majority of newsworthy stories involve a conflict of some sort. Maybe, sometimes, the world seems worse than it really is. When we do find struggles or injustices around us, it’s okay for that to make us sad. However, we can’t wallow in that sadness; we need to use it to join other voices around us to take a stand and make a change.