This week, Veronica revisits a favorite quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. to help us get a bird’s-eye-view of nonviolence. Often the focus of discussions on nonviolence can be on how to approach public action and movement. With this quote, we get to explore the why of nonviolence. This motivation can keep us strong when loving our enemies goes against what we think or feel. With this understanding, we can choose whether or not we want to add deeper darkness

Veronica calls attention to a simple fact that we, as a species continue to struggle with: retaliatory violence does not end in peace. We are conditioned by the world around us to think violence works, and most of us have not trained our minds to keep us from falling into violent patterns that have been modeled for us. With some practice and time spent developing our emotional intelligence, we can learn to act from a place of centeredness instead reacting, and pursue redemptive nonviolence and peace.