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Nonkilling Arts Research Committee Letter: Vol. 4, N. 2 (March-April 2020)
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"Nonkilling art explores the spirit and practice of how to prevent, respond to, and to improve individual, social, and global well-being beyond killing." —Glenn D. Paige
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Dear NKARC members and friends,
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Despite the many challenges that life throws at us, it's our hope for a better tomorrow that we want NKARC readers to be left with. The art we cover is about that hope, and in the process we sometimes have to remind ourselves of the past. Hope persists that we as individuals or as a community will eventually find a way out of that downward spiral.
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Thank you for your contributions; as always these are eclectic and inspirational, awakening our passion to prevent violence, and connect with life.
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1. Nonkilling Poetry
The following three poems originate from colleagues David Krieger, a nuclear disarmament champion, Amelia Burke a suicide prevention activist, and Francisco Gomes de Matos, a nonkilling peace linguist. Their poetry speaks for itself.
EACH NEW YEAR
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by David Krieger, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, USA
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another revolution
around the sun
a moment of pause
to take account
a fresh beginning
to make our world right
another chance to be
a good citizen of Earth
new hope that love
may conquer fear
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OUR WORLD IS YOUR WORLD
by Amelia Burke, Fabricants de Futur, UK/Spain
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Our world is flesh and bone
Your world is the mirror
In our world war, death and terror are real
In your world war, death and terror are fantasy
In our world we know the value of life
In your world you search for life’s meaning
Our world is your world in reverse
Your world is our world’s reflection
Welcome. Bring your heart. Let’s join both worlds together
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IMAGINATIVE PLANETARY LIFE
by Francisco Gomes de Matos, Peace linguist, Brazil
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What does space exploration cover?
A PeacePlanet will we ever discover?
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Would its inhabitants speak PEACE ?
Would they teach us how to make
all violence/killing/conflicts/wars to cease?
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On such planet what peacebuilding/sustaining initiatives had best succeeded? How?
To apply their approach to Peace what would be needed?
In what other peaceful features would that planet be inspiring?
Upon humbling learning from that peaceloving people, what should we be aspiring?
Imaginative PeacePlanets let's create
to help life on Earth deeply reeducate!
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2. Nonkilling Nonfiction
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The Fruits of Suicide/ El Fruto del Sucidio (in Spanish and English) - A Collective work published by Fabricants de Futur describes itself among other things to be a “listening platform”- connecting arts, mental health, and activism.
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Introducing this leading-edge collective, its editor, Amelia Burke writes: "I want us to recognise their great act of generosity - all fruits of suicide. Each person in this book has taken, and is taking, the conscious decision to live. This awareness of being alive is, perhaps, the most important gift which contact with suicide offers us. It is the gift of sensitivity, empathy and understanding." The book deals with sharing of individual and collective thoughts and a need to express that within a safe environment, NKARC thanks all FdF writers and visual artists involved with this work for their precious insights into value of life. The 102 page collective comprises challenging personal narratives, poetry and visual arts.
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3. Nonkilling Reflection
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Mony Dojeiji is the author of Walking for Peace. She and Alberto Agraso walked from Rome to Jerusalem in search of a city of peace! Mony shares with us her insightful reflection, entitled, In(r)Evolutions about parameters of judgemental peace.
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In(r)Evolutions
Watching the news these days is not for the faint of heart. The speed and complexity of events are dizzying. We seem to be riding a wave of emotions that never quite reaches shore, in a world that seems to be fraying at the seams.
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It’s impossible to tune out completely, unless you isolate yourself from the world. Although important to do, I also believe we’re here to engage with the world in a meaningful way rather than try to escape it.
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The question always becomes: what can I possibly do?
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When I walked to Jerusalem, I was DOING something, responding to a situation (9/11) that left me feeling vulnerable and afraid. My pilgrimage for peace would be my contribution to the forces and energies of peace.
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But I certainly wasn’t a person at peace.
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I was full of judgments. I had so many expectations. So many rigid ideas of right and wrong, my way or no way. (Just ask Alberto! LOL) So many fears. So much anger at what I perceived as injustices in the world and those perpetrating it.
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My big dream when I arrived in Jerusalem was to spark a massive march for peace, bring together people from all faiths and religions, Israelis and Palestinians, and whoever else wanted to join us in a march demanding peace in the Holy Land. I even wanted to live there, working for the UN or some NGO dedicated to peace.
It certainly didn’t work out that way.
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Although my intentions were pure – creating peace – my heart was fractured. Conflicted. Bitter. In pain.
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How could such a heart inspire peace in another?
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What kind of peace would this heart be creating?
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I was so focused on outer action, though, that I didn’t see this right away. The journey and its myriad experiences revealed these – and many more – truths to me, along with what was perhaps the most difficult to accept:
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There is nothing out there.
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It is ALL inside of you, revealing itself to you so that you may acknowledge it, accept it and liberate it.
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The priest that I judged and criticized for turning us away was the loving opportunity to heal the fears, expectations and judgments within me.
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The woman who brought me to tears because I couldn’t live up to her expectations of how a good pilgrim should behave was the loving opportunity to heal the wounded child within me.
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The few people who mocked or dismissed my pilgrimage were the loving opportunity to stand confidently in my truth and to speak it with open heart, even as it was still forming within me.
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The days and nights of anxiety and uncertainty when we didn’t know if we would have a roof over our heads were the loving opportunity to have faith in what we couldn’t see, and to know that a Great Love is always at work.
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This was the true journey. The transformation that was taking place. So that Peace and Love would find a home within me. And inspire my action in the world.
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THAT is the inner (r)evolution.
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And the source of all outer (r)evolutions.
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Gandhi. Martin Luther King. Marianne Williamson. They all understood this when they called for a revolution of Love.
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And every revolution needs its revolutionaries:
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4. Nonkilling Cinema
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Two fine anti-war films being talked about this year are: Terrence Malick's A Hidden Life (2hr. 54 min) and Sam Mendes' 1917 (1 hr. 59 min). As we get in time farther from World War I and World War II, it is interesting to see how filmmakers feel confident to look at those two devastating historical events beyond stories of national courage and bravado, the protagonists in the new films are no longer boastful about their superior ethics, capturing enemies or shaming them for inhumanity. Instead focus is on ordinary folks and how one’s life under the circumstances gets played and manipulated.
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While Malick's film is a full blown historical epic set in 1939 Austria with layered characters. It is shown from the point of view of an ordinary peasant, a devout Catholic, who refuses to take an oath of allegiance to serve in Hitler’s Nazi army; the focus of Sam Mendes' film, 1917 on the other hand, is a day in the life of two British infantry men tasked to carry a message to the front that will save lives of 1500 British soldiers. Mendes gritty film with minimal dialogue and plot takes you into grim details of the gruesome war a soldier must survive. Ultimately, the film’s mission becomes a learning experience for the viewer who begins to identify with the numbing ache of the protagonist soldier as the narrative unfolds. Both films devoid of patriotic platitudes go direct to one’s humanist core, delving into deeper issues of one’s conscience.
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Another film in this category that impacted me was Jojo Rabbit, a satire on the Second World War made by Taika Waititi (109 min). A wacky tragicomedy is seen through the eyes of a 10 year old (!) German Hitler Youth. Barry Hertz in his review writes: “Jojo Rabbit excels with a sincere balance of humour and absurdity and tragedy” pointing us adult “dum kopfs” inability to transcend our hate and prejudices. It is challenging for many who have continued to look over past seven decades at home boys as heroes or victims, to concede about absurdity of warfare. These movies are haunting reminders of the ability of political leaders during two World Wars as Richard Koenigsberg in his thought-provoking book, Nations have the Right to kill writes, to convince ordinary people that killing their neighbours was patriotic.
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For more on the above three films:
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5. Nonkilling Music
Thanks to Francisco Gomes de Matos for this from PeaceTech Lab, on how music can amp up Peacebuilding?
Music as a Bridge for Peace
by María Esmeralda Paguaga
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Growing up, I watched music drive social movements and bring people together even in times of war. I experienced how songs could be both a tool for communication and a bridge between people of different ideologies. I am a citizen of the world that knows building more prosperous and peaceful communities is possible through music.
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There are countless examples of people turning to music to build movements and catalyze positive social change. Woodstock promoted peace by connecting people from all backgrounds through song. The iconic Live Aid concert raised more than $125 million for famine relief in Africa. It even led to hit benefit singles like "Do They Know It's Christmas?" and "We Are The World" that brought musicians together to help move the needle on some of the world’s most pressing problems.
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And today, music keeps building bridges instead of barriers.
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A decade after the success of 2008’s Paz sin Fronteras (Peace Without Borders), a series of free outdoor concerts across Latin America, Sir Richard Branson and Bruno Ocampo organized Venezuela Aid Live this past February to pressure the Venezuelan government to increase humanitarian aid and create awareness about the conflict in the country. It was hugely successful, raising over $2 million in donations in just four days.
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Music helps spread awareness and educate new generations to raise their voices against injustices. Artists, musicians, and influencers now use social media platforms to create meaningful social change. A vivid example of this is #TodosSomosMigrantes (We are all Migrants) the campaign featuring Grammy award winning singer-songwriter Ricardo Montaner and other renowned artists, to promote inclusion, reduce xenophobia, and spotlight the inequalities migrants and refugees face.
Mixing the universal language of music with the digital footprint and engaged following of musicians on social media can have real impact. Together we can use the power of peacetech to become better citizens of the world, so that every single one of us — without exception — can make a difference as activists and peacebuilders.
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6. Nonkilling Activism
(i) The Seasons for Nonviolence - from Mahatma Gandhi to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
64 Daily Practices That Make a Difference...
We learn to practice nonviolence one step at a time, one choice at a time, one day at a time. This is how each of us, in our own way, move the world in the direction of peace through daily nonviolent choices and actions at home, at school, in the workplace and community.
The Gandhi King Season for Nonviolence commences on January 30 and marks the 64 calendar days between the memorial anniversary of the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi and that of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on April 4. This annual campaign was co-founded by Dr. Arun Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi's grandson, and The Association for Global New Thought. Individuals, schools, and organizations in 900 cities in 67 countries have participated since the campaign began in 1998.
The objective is to create an awareness of nonviolent principles and practice as a powerful way to heal, transform, and empower our lives and communities. It is, therefore, the purpose of the Season and the following 64 Daily Practices to educate and inspire individuals and organizations alike to actively seek out nonviolent means by which to empower themselves and others to co-exist in peace and prosper together in community.
You can get started anytime during the season, view the themes for Week 1 or download an overview of all 64 days Season for Nonviolence Overview
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Thanks to Gandhi Foundation colleague Colleen Ring who has been hosting this initiative every year.
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(ii) World Beyond War activists conference in Ottawa, Canada - May 26-31
Greta Zarro, Organizing Director, World Beyond War writes:
We're gearing up for #NoWar2020 this May 26-31 in Ottawa, Canada.
#NoWar2020 is unlike any conference we've organized before because:
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- We're timing the conference to coincide with CANSEC, Canada's biggest weapons expo, to bring international attention to Canada's complicity in the global arms trade.
- The May 29-30 conference is part of a week-long series of events, starting May 26, including nonviolence training, art-making workshops, film screenings, and of course, the nonviolent direct actions at CANSEC, the weapons expo.
- #NoWar2020 is the product of a truly global effort. We're working hand-in-hand with dozens of allies, including 350.org, the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space, and Canadian Voice of Women for Peace, to pull together this week of education and nonviolent action.
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7. Nonkilling Visual Arts
(i) A decade of Deborah Nehmad's work - a mini retrospective
I saw Honolulu based American artist Deborah’s Nehmad’s work Wasted five years ago and found that it fit with our conception of Nonkilling visual arts. One of her reviewer’s comment was: "Wasted is not an optimistic installation, but neither is it didactic or polemic. Nehmad is concerned with data and information, but she is also dedicated to exploring the ritual power of art-making to pursue deeper connections and empathy." (David M. Goldberg).
Deborah’s art drawn in paper and thread in abstract shapes confronts us with socio-political reality surrounding her as evident from the titles of her installations -- Wasted installation was about prevailing gun culture and its victims in USA; What’s Going on with this country? installation was inspired from massacre at Sandy Hill Elementary School in Connecticut; Targeted Mission, and her recent Twit referred to US President’s 300 divisive Tweets. The following link outlining her decade long work provides an overview of her nonkilling leading-edge art installations and her: http://www.deborahnehmad.com/mobile_ongoing_projects_installations.html
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(ii) Mexican Artist Pedro Reyes Molds 1,527 Guns into Shovels...
Inspired by a trip Mexican Artist Pedro Reyes made to recycling plants where government officials turn seized weapons into raw materials, Reyes created Shovels for Guns, a work of art for which he collected 1,527 guns and rifles—half of them automatic and for military use—giving their owners a voucher to buy household appliances and electronics in exchange for giving them up. Reyes shows how an object used for harm can be molded into one that promotes life in a project titled Palas por Pistolas. Reyes says, "I think the purpose of art is to find ways to transform the most negative instincts into creative instincts..."
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8. CGNK Updates
Nonkilling Responses to Climate Crisis Conference in Vasa, Finland
Åbo Akademi University in Vasa, home of the Programme in Peace, Mediation and Conflict Research, is co-organizing with the Center for Global Nonkilling, its Fifth international “Explorations in Peace & Conflict Research” conference on March 13, 2020 focusing on the topic “Nonkilling Responses to Climate Crisis”.
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9. Nonkilling Journalism
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Last Word
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From Nonkilling poet laureate Francisco Gomes de Matos:
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When forests burning we see
When forests burning we see
What does that tell you and me?
That the Rights of Nature are being violated
and by inhuman actions trees
are devastated
It also tells us that deforestation is abominably profit-making
and it reminds us that protecting
flora and fauna is part of our global citizenship participating
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A soulful reflection, "In Praise of Meekness", from our physician colleague Hugh Mann:
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“With counter intuition and bountiful cognition, the gentleness and kindness aren't weakness or bleakness, but the greatness of meekness, the elixir of life and fixer of strife.”
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My deep gratitude to all who contributed and pointed to material for this Letter.
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Look forward as always to your inspirations, suggestions and comments.
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"Nonkilling Culture crosses all the lines." —Glenn D. Paige
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Nonkilling is THE measure of Human progress
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[THIS IS AN INTERNAL NEWSLETTER OF THE NKARC. COPYRIGHT FOR ALL MATERIAL IN THE NEWSLETTER REMAINS PROPERTY OF THE SOURCES/WRITERS/ART CREATORS]
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Stay in contact also on Social Networks
- Please feel free to contact NKARC Letter's coordinator at billbhaneja@nonkilling.org.
- You can also follow the Center for Global Nonkilling at these social networks:
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