Skill Share Lesson – Conflict Resolution Pedagogy
By: Chelsie Kuhn and Jeff McGuire
The School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution
George Mason University

Introduction and Background: This lesson was conducted for a Conflict Resolution Pedagogy class at GMU’s School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution. The goal of the skill share was to provide students with the social/emotional intelligence to affecting deal with anger, in the context of maintain nonviolent discipline while a participant in a nonviolent resistance movement.

Supplies:

• Projector/Screen to show film clip
• White Board Markers to capture debrief

Procedures:

1). Sample Introduction Script:

• “Anger is inside of all of us, and has the ability to raise up inside of us at moments when we don’t want it to, and moments when it is not beneficial to be angry. But it’s a fact of life, and a fact of our existence. What prevents anger from having a negative impact on our actions and our lives is having the personal intelligence on how to deal with and harness anger when it does arise. This is a kind of discipline. We’re not necessarily arguing that anger needs to be suppressed per se, just that we all need to be knowledgeable about the negative impact it can have.
• It’s our responsibility as conflict resolution practitioners to have skills that focus on remaining peaceful and nonviolent, even when it’s very easy to become violent. Nonviolence or violence exists in all aspects of our lives; our language, our demeanor, our social relationships, how we view ourselves, how we view ourselves within society, and how we interact with others. I argue that it’s an important personal objective to allow for nonviolence – as opposed to violence – to be the leading frame in our lives. Part of filling this objective is having the skills to harness powerful emotions, mainly anger, when they arise.
• Nowhere does this take on a more important role than in the context of a nonviolent movement or nonviolent action. Throughout history, nonviolent actors have succeeded in creating widespread, revolutionary change. This is often done in the face of severe, violent repression by those who want to prevent change and maintain the status quo. These actors – desperate to get out from under oppression – made the tactical and strategic decision to resist the urge to take up arms and lead a violent movement toward change.
• But for every nonviolent movement or specific nonviolent act that succeeded, there are ones that failed. The presence of a violent actor or the committing of violent acts has the ability to completely hijack nonviolent ones, and drastically diminish chances of success. Anger that transitions into violence can shift the entire narrative in a way that can basically ruin everything. The same way one bad apple can ruin a batch, or one misplaced domino can stop momentum, or a single drop of oil can contaminate a gallon of water. So, it is extremely important that we develop the skills to have personal intelligence about anger. How does anger feel? What does it feel like inside of us? What does anger make us want to do?
• I’d like to show a short clip now, from a documentary film titled A Force More Powerful. This clip is a brief explanation of the workshops that James Lawson led during the Civil Rights Movement. Lawson led trainings and workshops for the Nashville Student Movement and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, both crucial actors during the Civil Rights movement, particularly in the Nashville sit-ins, which for those of you who don’t know, were a challenge to segregation at lunch counters.

2). A Force More Powerful: Training for Nonviolent Action (James Lawson)

3). Facilitated Imagination Exercise: Handling anger in the face of violent oppression –> Nonviolence

• Imagine constantly being policed and harassed by others (police, teacher, etc.). What would that feel like?
  • Open up discussion
    • What did it feel like?
    • Where in your body did the emotions come up?
    • Why do you think you’re feeling this way?
    • Why might this matter for our field as a whole?
      • Emotions and Trauma come up in our bodies, and we need to deal with them accordingly.
    • What do you think you did personally to keep yourself from being _____? How did you express this?
  • How can you discharge some of this energy?
    • Journaling exercise
    • Give someone a high five
    • Different visualization
    • Metta meditation?
  • Spinning them out of trauma
    • Shows the importance of doing it
    • Resources to guide people
    • Capacity building

4). Learning Outcomes:

• Students will be able to recognize emotions coming up for them
• Students will be able to identify and connect emotions and the body
• Students will be able to list potential coping mechanism that could help them
• Students will be able to discuss why coping mechanisms are important for practitioners in conflict analysis and resolution

This series of videos describes the practice of Liberation theology over the past two decades in a neighborhood on the outskirts of a Brazilian city in the Northeast.  It is relevant to those who are interested in social movements in Brazil, their history, and also for those interested in Paulo Freire and critical pedagogy, as many of Freire’s ideas came out of Liberation theology as it was practiced in Brazil’s northeast.

Part 1 – In this first video, Bira takes us through the spiritual underpinnings of Liberation theology and the establishment by missionaries of a Basic Ecclesial Community.  Many social-justice movements in Brazil were spawned in these communities, including some that turned into political parties, and others that turned into militant reform movements.

Part 2- In this second video, Bira describes the housing project, Cajazeiras – its creation, its exclusion, and the dynamic interaction between those in the apartments with basic sanitation, and those in the rapidly expanding favelas around them. He introduces the missionaries Padre Luis Lintner and Pina Rabbiosi, the founders of Casa do Sol, and describes his initial formative interactions with the priest, who brought Liberation theology to the neighborhood. Finally, he situates the Casa do Sol in the context of the community of Cajazeiras.

Part 3 – In this clip, Bira describes in more detail the programs of the Casa do Sol and its use of art in the social context.  In the 1990s there was an “explosion” of NGOs in Brazil, which helped form the foundation of the quest for social justice there.  Much of their work was done with youth, through art and sports.

Part 4 – Bira in this clip articulates the positionality of Paulo Freire’s critical pedagogy with Liberation theology, the Casa do Sol Itself, the Movimento Sem Terra (Landless Movement), and a culture of peace, justice, and social struggle in Brazil.  He also describes the tragedy that was visited upon the Casa do Sol a few years after its inauguration.

Part 5 – In this final clip, we wrap up the conversation.  Bira speaks about the current political turmoil in Brazil, about corruption, and about the ongoing quest for social justice.

Interview of Bira Azevedo by Andrew Della Rocca

Translated and subtitled by Andrew Della Rocca

For Dr. Arthur Romano at George Mason’s School of Conflict Analysis and Resolution

Introduction and Background

The following lesson plan was used by a group of Conflict Analysis and Resolution Master’s and PhD Candidates for a two hour event on the George Mason University Fairfax Campus with approximately 15-20 undergraduate students. The students all came voluntarily, but most were studying Conflict Analysis and Resolution, Global Affairs, and Communications.

Enduring Understanding:The role of identity and how it works for or against us in the world

Essential Questions: How do our multiple identities impact our experiences in life?

Learning Objectives

• Students will discover the myriad identities that they possess
  
• Students will discover how they connect with different people through different identities, and not all identities are those propagated in media and popular culture.
• Students will discover how identities fit in Marie Dugan’s Nested Model, and how it’s complicated to hold multiple identities within multiple levels of systems.

Time Needed

Total: 2-3 hours

Breakdown:

Intro and Identity Maps (1+ hour)
Nested Model Mapping Activity (1+hour)

Materials Needed

Index Cards
Dry erase markers/board
Computer Paper
Pencils/Pens
Masking tape
Shoebox
Facilitator(s)

Procedures

1). Welcome everyone into the space

2). Explain the activity:

• The goal is to create a visual map of all the identities you hold. You may put your name on it, or not if you choose to remain anonymous–either is fine, the point is to see what identities you hold.
• Using the notecard you received, write down the most important identity you hold and place it in the box/container
• Once you’re finished, grab a piece of tape and stick your map up on the wall somewhere in the room.
• Grab a sheet of stickers from the front table. When you’re ready, go around to each map and put a sticker next to different identities that you hold on other people’s maps.
• Once you’re finished, grab a seat somewhere in the circle for our discussion.

3). Break into discussion

• What does it feel like to see other people’s identity maps?
• General impressions?
• What was difficult about this?
• Were there identities presented that you were surprised to see?
• What can we say about identities that are traditionally marginalized?
• What is conducive to creating safe spaces to talk about identity?
• What about conflicting identities? How do we hold multiple at once? What is saliency?

4). Transition to box identities and nested model mapping

5). Have facilitator hold box, and have 3-4 participants choose an notecard without looking

6). One by one, have the participants with notecards go up to the board and have the audience help them place where the identity goes within the nested model. Discuss as the participant is placing the identity why it should go there.

7). Debrief Questions

• Was your identity picked to be placed within the model? If so, how did it feel? If not, how did it feel?
• How is this model representative of society?
• What do you feel is missing? Under-represented? Why might this be?
• How could this model be useful when thinking about how we interact with one another?
• Overall, what did you think of this activity?

8). Closing: Metta Meditation–send love/positive energy to appreciate everyone’s willingness to participate at whatever level of depth they decided today. Discussing identities can be difficult because it is such a vulnerable, and sometime painful, topic. To continue processing and moving forward in this work, we need to be willing to open up and discuss what certain identity experiences hold. Facilitators thank everyone for coming.

This lecture explores  informal education and its importance in conflict resolution.

我們活在21世紀。一個充滿了衝突的世紀，但是別氣餒。讓我來跟各位說說衝突是多麼好的一件事情，然後面對衝突該秉持著什麼樣的態度。

El papel de la fotografía desde los estudios de paz y conflicto

Esta es una serie de cuatro cápsulas donde se reflexiona sobre el papel del fotoperiodismo de guerra y su capacidad, de la mano de narrativas que pongan al centro la dignidad humana vulnerada por la violencia, para introducir nuevas concepciones sobre el daño de la violencia y las relaciones de poder que la permiten y perpetúan.

Primera Parte

Segunda Parte

Tercera Parte

Cuarta Parte

This is a 3-part presentation on the connection between nonviolent movements and the military.

Part I: How Nonviolent Movements Should Engage with the Military
Part II: How the Military Should Engage with Nonviolent Movements
Part III: The Role of Nonviolent Movements in Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration

Feel free to contact me with any questions or comments at jeffwmcguire1@gmail.com

PART I: HOW NONVIOLENT MOVEMENTS SHOULD ENGAGE WITH THE MILITARY

PART II: HOW THE MILITARY SHOULD ENGAGE WITH NONVIOLENT MOVEMENTS

PART III: THE ROLE OF NONVIOLENT MOVEMENTS IN D.D.R.