Forum Post: How to CREATE A CRISIS (the good kind)
Posted 12 years ago on March 7, 2012, 7:49 p.m. EST by therising
(6643)
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
Martin Luther King, Jr. was a radical. He was not the sanitized guy we roll out every MLK day when only a few lines of the dream speech are trumpeted. Oh no. He was a radical through and through.
King's preferred method of change was to help foster a crisis. Yes, a crisis.
He put it like this in his Letter from the Birmingham Jail:
"Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks to so dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. My citing the creation of tension as part of the work of the nonviolent-resister may sound rather shocking. But I must confess that I am not afraid of the word "tension." I have earnestly opposed violent tension, but there is a type of constructive, nonviolent tension which is necessary for growth. Just as Socrates felt that it was necessary to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise from the bondage of myths and half-truths to the unfettered realm of creative analysis and objective appraisal, we must we see the need for nonviolent gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood."
"The purpose of our direct-action program is to create a situation so crisis-packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation. I therefore concur with you in your call for negotiation."
Here's the entire "Letter from the Birmingham Jail": http://abacus.bates.edu/admin/offices/dos/mlk/letter.html . It's a treasure and is as timely as ever.
Direct action with large numbers of people can make a real difference. Consider this other quote from Martin Luther King, Jr., an occupier from back in the day:
"A delegation of poor people can walk into a high official’s office with a carefully, collectively prepared list of demands. (If you’re poor, if you’re unemployed anyway, you can choose to stay in Washington as long as the struggle needs you.) And if that official says, ‘But Congress would have to approve this,’ or, ‘But the President would have to be consulted on that,’ you can say, ‘All right, we’ll wait.’ And you can settle down in his office for as long a stay as necessary."
What we're talking about here is pushing from the outside AND the inside. . . forcing the hand of congress nonviolently as has been done before. Gandhi and King's tactics work. Let's use them.
Let's grow our numbers and, if the GA's approve, let's do this on Saturday, August 4th: http://www.occupywallst.org/forum/fresh-thread-forum-post-below-received-over-2000-c/
Documents released thanks to the Freedom of Information Act show that Coretta Scott King was closely monitored by the FBI for 2 years after her husband's assassination. The powers that be didn't want her linking the anti-war movement to the civil rights movement as her husband had begun doing in speeches shortly before he was killed. This potential union of anti-war activists and civil rights activists scared the daylights out of the 1%. They feared the moral authority such a unified movement would wield.
So they perpetrated violence to eliminate chance of such an intersection. And followed Mrs. King to make sure she didn't make the same powerful connection.
Connections are dangerous to the 1%.
They know that as soon as we the 99% start paying attention to what we have in common rather than what separates us, we, the 99%, will begin to make decisions from a position of unified strength rather than demands from a position of divided weakness.
They can't afford to have us unify. And we can't afford not to.
It's going to be a beautiful springtime in America. You can feel it.
"They know that as soon as we the 99% start paying attention to what we have in common"
The most right on thing I've written or read. Thanks for writing it again:)
I keep pointing out that we are supposed to have the constitution in common. Occupy seems to only recognize the problems (gee, which is worse?) rather than the solution, Article V, always the same (if it is read right) but 100 years late (congress refuses to read it right).
I hear what you're saying. I want us to organize and unite to save our republic (by getting money out of politics etc) not destroy our republic. We can do this.
The only actual plan I've seen that can gain the official power needed is here,
http://articlevconvention.org/showthread.php?33-Amendment-By-Layers-Of-Priority-constitutionAmendment-Package-Making-CONST.-Intent
A package that citizens demand delegates agree to which reinstates vital aspects of consitutionality, potentially solving many problems alone, then with that restored constitutionality, use Article V to carefull and properly amend the constitution to reinforce the republics principles with full constitutional intent.
It's like goin' to do a job with tools and materials. It's preparation.
Yes we can do this, but we need to help people to get past the distractions and confusion the opposition promotes.
I like the way you think.
Agreement needs to assemble and be seen. Here at OWS we have loads of chafe designed by the infiltration to cover and obscure agreement and diminish its meaning.
I found a post that shows that this forum has a hidden directory just to censor what it doesn't like. In this case, an amazing proposal that brings the constitution loving military into alliance with citizens for a reasonable, lawful and peaceful revolution.
http://occupywallst.org/forum/how-does-a-soldier-defend-the-constitution-from-a-/
The user that posted that thread been trying to bring attention to this here and I've found a link to their site that shows that posts do not appear. They also post at that Article V forum.
http://algoxy.com/ows/owsinfiltratingforum.html
Do you realize what this means?
The dream is very much alive.
Connections are dangerous to the 1%
nonviolent direct action would be like if we all burned our drivers licenses-accomplishing what I'm not sure- you have do something illegal in other words
No. You haven't read enough about the civil rights movement. History is very helpful here.
So what Rosa Parks did was legal? Martin Luther King told her to do it. You have to incite the other side. That's entire point.
Exercising first amendment rights isn't illegal. And we can do so and bring great results!
Is this Rahm Emanual posting this?
Why would you suggest such a thing?
"You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that it's an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before."
Rahm Emanuel
Crisis brings opportunity
To Bush/Cheney alright.
Works both ways. We should utilize crisis situations for good rather than their method (for bad).
I understand. Rahm was advising Barack Obama. It can work regardless of the politics involved.
We should use it for good
Fine.
Glad to see you find this kind of strategy appealing,as it explains volumes about Progressive/Leftist politics. The ends justify the means,....correct?
That has nothing to do with this but nice try.
Really? Explain why?
No. You see, the way this works is that YOU have to explain how your statement pertains, not me. That's your job as a commenter. When you bring in red herrings (that's a form of of logical fallacy), the burden is on you to show why they're relevant. Until then, you're just yappin'.
"The ends justify the means,....correct?"
"That has nothing to do with this"
"Really? Explain why?"
Still waiting,but finding out I really don't give a fuck.
Yes. You really don't. That's clear. You're very lazy. Too lazy to make your own point. Well I'm not going to make it for you. Please go back and reready last comment.
Like I already said, bros... Operation Mayhem.
No. Not mayhem. Far from it. Nonviolent direct action.
Maybe but that wasn't in Fight Club... so I don't use it.
OK - you focus on Hollywood. We'll focus on each playing our small part to restore the republic. Each little effort added to others will bring big change.
Hey, conservatives always say liberals in Hollywood are ruining the world. They MUST be doing something right.
Huh?
Who, conservatives, or Hollywood?
Dayum shame is confusing
Ambiguity, just another tool in the arsenal of confusion.
My college logic professor knocked most of the ambiguity out of me. He showed me that language is really math. In some ways he's right. In other ways, of course, he missed the magic.
Regardless, ambiguity ain't part of the magic :)
I am hopeful that we'll get skillfull at strategic tactical nonviolent direct action. It's a chess match we can win. We have huge advantages.
We will win, the question is just when. Did you see my post about avaaz.com, the online petition site. Almost 14,000,000 members and counting, rapidly!
Missed it. Can you forward lik? That's great news about the participation.
Here it is, and I think it can be a great element in our struggle for a more just society and a more just world. Something impressive, new, and exciting is happening here.
http://www.avaaz.org/en/
That is just amazing. We need to spread that link far and wide!!!
Yes, it is. People are talking about direct democracy when it is already HAPPENING. It's exciting - perhaps not the whole solution- but a huge step forward!!!
http://occupywallst.org/forum/site-at-link-below-is-one-key-to-success-of-worldw/
[Removed]
Truth. It is neither here nor there. Easy to twist to fit a wanted context.
Good point. I like the Martin Luther King, Jr. quote: "Truth crushed to earth rises up.". I believe that's true.
You can not keep the truth down. I like your quote. I'm headin out for the night have a good night.
Cheers