What is Pacifism?
Pacifism is the belief that war and violence are wrong, or at least that they should be avoided and never be the first choice. The word covers a range of views. Absolute pacifists refuse all violence, even in self-defense. Others reject war but accept limited force by police. Some oppose only particular wars, which is closer to a just war stance. Pacifists base their views on religion, conscience or reasoned ethics. They do not simply sit by. Many take part in active campaigns of protest, civil disobedience and relief work.
Core beliefs
- Taking human life is wrong, and war is the largest scale of it.
- Violence tends to breed more violence and bitterness.
- Disputes between states should be settled by talks, courts and compromise.
- Nonviolent action can be a strong force for change.
- Weapons spending, especially nuclear arms, should be cut back.
- People should be free to refuse military service on grounds of conscience.
History
Early Christian groups were reluctant to fight, and later churches, such as the Quakers, Mennonites and Brethren, made peace a core teaching. Quakers have stated this publicly since the 1600s. In the 1800s peace societies formed in Britain and the United States. Leo Tolstoy argued for Christian nonviolence, and Bertha von Suttner's 1889 novel Lay Down Your Arms won wide readership, and she received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1905. The First World War created a large number of conscientious objectors, many of whom were jailed. Mohandas Gandhi developed satyagraha, or nonviolent resistance, first in South Africa and then in India. The Peace Pledge Union formed in Britain in 1934, and the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament in 1958. Martin Luther King Jr. used Gandhi's methods in the American civil rights movement.
Variants
Absolute pacifism rejects all force. Conditional or selective pacifism accepts some uses of force. Religious pacifism arises from faith, as with Quakers, and secular pacifism from ethics or politics. Nonviolence is often treated as a method of action, while pacifism is a principle. Anarchist and socialist pacifists link war to the state or to capitalism. Some pacifists, like Dorothy Day, tied their stance to work for the poor.
Criticisms
Critics argue that nonviolence cannot stop determined aggressors, and they cite the 1930s and Nazi Germany. George Orwell claimed in 1942 that pacifism in wartime helped the enemy. Others say a refusal to use force leaves the weak without defense. Pacifists reply that war causes huge suffering, and that a well-known study of resistance campaigns found nonviolent ones succeeded more often than violent ones.
In practice
Pacifism has shaped law and culture. Many countries recognize conscientious objection, and peace studies, arms control treaties and nonviolent protest owe much to it. Few states have ever adopted pure pacifism as policy. On the 12 axes it scores at the extreme toward Cooperation on Foreign policy. It leans Democratic on Authority and Liberty on Security, and its other scores are mild, since the creed says little about the economy.