Resistance is a gentle way of saying refusal, revolution, or even insurgency.
It is non-acceptance.
I borrow the word from the French Resistance movement
against the German Nazi occupation during World War II.
Resistance fighters resisted accepting foreign governance and injustice.
Former French Resistance member, 94-year-old Stephane Hessel,
in his recent 32 page bestseller-pamphlet-book Indignez-vous (2010),
wrote a beautiful metaphor of what it means to resist:
"We will be the yeast that makes the bread rise."
He ends his book stating in all capital letters,
"To create is to resist, to resist is to create."
Resistance may sometimes be an act of creation,
when it creates change and gives birth to something new.
 |
| Andree Peel, French Resistance fighter codename Agent Rose just turned 104 years old. She wears her medals for heroism during WWII. |
But then, there is the Right to Peace.
How do you reconcile the Right to Peace with the Right to Resistance?
When resistance is revolution or insurgency,
these are often labeled anti-pacific actions of war or violence.
(U.S. Revolutionary War, French Revolution)
(U.S.Civil Rights Movement, Anti-Apartheid fighters, Libyan insurgents.)
In spite of the use of violence, those in favor of a particular resistance movement
may call these revolutionaries freedom fighters.
In spite of the use of violence, those in favor of a particular resistance movement
may call these revolutionaries freedom fighters.
listed over 30 grievances against the King of England in 1776.
Instead of violence, Hessel suggests a call for "a true peaceful uprising,"
and he mentions economic means as a possible pathway.
But "peaceful uprising" is an oxymoron.
A better term is "non-violent uprising."
Any uprising disrupts, leading to chaos, which is never peaceful.
There is always some anxiety and confusion present.
Violence may result when resistance needs are not met
or when others rebel against the resistance.
.
A question to ask:
is resistance
an unstoppable, evolutionary human instinct
based in genes?
And is this sparked by our emotional nature,
the very trait that makes us human?
But "peaceful uprising" is an oxymoron.
A better term is "non-violent uprising."
Any uprising disrupts, leading to chaos, which is never peaceful.
There is always some anxiety and confusion present.
Violence may result when resistance needs are not met
or when others rebel against the resistance.
.
A question to ask:
is resistance
an unstoppable, evolutionary human instinct
based in genes?
And is this sparked by our emotional nature,
the very trait that makes us human?
I declare the Right to Non-violent Resistance
to fight any power that is corrupt and/or injust
in denying people their natural rights.
Who will resist in order to create a better 21st century?
Is Sky of Stars an act of resistance?
Revision: thanks to commenters R.A.T. Jr., TP, KP, Cbereng
Revision: thanks to commenters R.A.T. Jr., TP, KP, Cbereng
