Violence is not the answer - nor the entire problem

[To a friend who spoke against the violence in Ferguson in absolute terms]

I agree with you that a huge problem in our society is lack of action, and people speaking authoritatively without having engaged with attempting to solve things with action, or experiencing directly the injustice they want to complain about. This is a problem both in times of protest and times of relative calm, as it promotes the illusion of isolation and makes it psychologically easier to do violence to others.

However, I also see a problem we have in reducing complex problems to simple solutions. The situation in Ferguson right now is not simple, there is a lot going on that is both right and wrong, and I think it adds to the problem - and works against peace - to oversimplify, and look away from evidence and opinions that are hard to fit into the picture. When things are complex, we are called to grapple with them, sit with the discomfort of uncertainty, and grope our way toward a new vision of truth.

In my life experience - which you know some but not all of - there has been physical violence, but there also has been emotional and relational violence that did not include physicality - but was far more damaging. Studies suggest that emotional neglect of a child can be psychologically as damaging or worse than physical abuse (http://www.apa.org/.../2014/10/psychological-abuse.aspx). This is to say there are forms of violence that can't easily be seen.

That is true in my life experience, and it is what I am concerned about in Ferguson and with Black Americans in general. It is one thing to say "stop being a thug, take responsibility, get over it," but if we fail to see there are forms of non-physical violence still being perpetrated on black communities - as can be statistically seen in things like unequal policing, incarceration rates, and economic discrimination - then unfortunately we are failing to get to the root of a complex problem. We are focusing on stopping one form of obvious violence, while we look the other way from another form, which perpetuates the problem. 

I agree with you that true peace and security is the goal. But to achieve that, we must root out injustice and violence in all its forms.

Childhood Psychological Abuse as Harmful as Sexual or Physical Abuse

Children who are emotionally abused and neglected face...

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