As UN member states and agencies escalate repression of liberation movements worldwide, more of us will be confronted with a choice of how to participate in the human rights struggle. Whether we protest or resist, it will be advantageous to understand how our participation relates to that of others. Through that understanding, we can create a beloved community where all roles are respected and supported. Unity in diversity.
For those of us in the United States, the fight to abolish segregation and other forms of racial discrimination still resonates in how we oppose tyranny. I suppose that’s why they call the strategy of Freedom Summer in 1963 Mississippi civil disobedience. Disobedience is by definition resistance.
Compliance with rules about marching, asking permission to assemble, staying within the barriers–these are not acts of resistance. While they are ancillary to resistance, they are nevertheless important. For those who want to learn more about integrating the various roles required, James Forman’s book The Making of Black Revolutionaries remains instructive.
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