Peace: Our Collective Responsibility
By Digafie DeBalke and Darlene O’Leary
Earlier this month, we were happy to participate in an event with the Walking Together for Peace group that is using walking as a powerful opportunity to learn, educate, and demonstrate their commitment to peace. The group is walking from Pugwash to Halifax to mark the International Day of Peace on September 21. They hope to build a grassroots movement for peace in particular to urge the federal government to support the international Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. It was a beautiful experience being with people from around the world who have committed their lives to peace
As the group of walkers would attest to, the responsibility of building sustainable peace is not a duty that should be left only to certain groups or institutions. It is rather the collective undertaking of each and everyone of us who wish to pass on a just and an inclusive world for the next generations.
As we engage more frequently and more deeply in the practice of building peace, we start to recognize that peace is not just an absence of war or violence, but it is also as the presence of economic, political and social justice where communities are able to flourish.
At the very core of peacebuilding is relationship-building, and this happens at an individual, community, state, and at a global level. Relationships that are rooted in mutual interest, respect, and dignity are the very foundation of sustainable peace.
There are moments in which we feel the world around us is on fire and everything seems to be unraveling. We feel helpless and hopeless. These feelings are not coming out of thin air. They are based on what we hear, see, and experience everyday in our daily lives, in the news, and on social media. We grapple with them, often being unsure of what to do and how to act.
However, each of us has a place to anchor our understanding of and action for peace wherever we are. We have the capacity to build a formative influence on the ‘culture of peace’ we want to establish. As we engage more frequently and more deeply in the practice of building peace, we start to recognize that peace is not just an absence of war or violence, but it is also as the presence of economic, political and social justice where communities are able to flourish.
The African philosophy of “Ubuntu”, made familiar by great leaders like Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, says a person is a person through another person. We are our fullest selves together. Individual existence is contrary to the very essence of being human. And so, when we dehumanize the ‘other’, we are dehumanizing ourselves. Sadly, we see this dehumanization in social media and politics more and more. This is something we all can resist by recognizing our fundamental interconnectedness.
Our aspirations and hopes for sustainable peace should stress re-examining and recalibrating our relationship with each other and with the natural world. We often justify a kind of dominance over the Earth and those we consider “less than” us. However, an approach of interconnectedness shows that we are part of nature, and our well-being is tied to the well-being of the Earth. More and more, we are understanding the intersections of social and ecological justice and peace.
As we continue to participate in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals, a commitment Canada has signed to “leave no one behind”, it is imperative we recognize the fact that our individual and collective actions are vital in making sustainable peace. Grassroots communities are the very foundations of peace. They have the capacity to act at the local level and the ability to influence policy at the national and global levels.
Our community here in Antigonish has a legacy and history of organizing itself to address injustices that impact community peace. The Antigonish Movement is a remarkable example of grassroots education and collective action for the well being of so many communities. Harnessing these lessons from history and realigning them for today’s challenges is in our capacity.
On this International Day of Peace, let us identify our individual and collective capacity and assets for peace. Let us strengthen and enhance our existing individual and community relationships. Let us also initiate and nurture new relationships based on dignity and respect.
Debalke is a facilitator of the Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation Program at Coady Institute, St. Francis Xavier University.
O’Leary is the Coordinator of the Martha Justice Ministry with the Sisters of St. Martha, Antigonish.