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Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Introduction -- 1. The Theory and Practice of Nonviolent Political Action -- 2. Political Theory, Violence and the State -- 3. Nonviolence, the State and Civil Resistance -- 4. Nonviolence and Political Power -- 5. Structure, Agency and Nonviolent Political Action -- 6. Pacifism and Nonviolence -- Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Index

1. Introducing Nonviolence 1 . - 2. Non-Violence in Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism 11 . - 3. Christianity and Nonviolence 27. - 4. Islam and Nonviolence 41. - 5. Philosophical Foundations of Nonviolence 56 . - 6. Gandhi and Nonviolence 77 . - 7. Pragmatic Nonviolence 88. - 8. Critiques of Nonviolence 112. - 9. Nonviolence in the Twentieth Century 134 . - 10. Nonviolence in the Twenty-First Century 155 . - Conclusion: Democracy and Nonviolence 177

Nonviolent action is best known as a kind of protest tactic used where neither the vote nor the gun seems to offer effective methods of achieving the desired social change. Those using this tactic may or may not have a general commitment to nonviolence. The author argues that the objectives of nonviolent action must become broader and more ambitious and that through a variety of coordinated efforts we should seek to 'institutionalize nonviolence' and to generalize nonviolent behaviors throughout society. Such an effort involves the transformation of all institutions implicated in the practice of direct or structural violence. The role of the State in the existing global violence system is especially criticized. The author outlines eight important components in the process she has labelled the 'institutionalization of nonviolence'.

This article interprets the globalization of nonviolence and nonviolent resistance through the lens of Manfred B. Steger's concept of the "global imaginary." It argues that the globalization of nonviolence and the global imaginary are mutually reinforcing processes. Nonviolent protests are driven by local issues and are, thus, context specific and local but, as in the case of the Arab uprisings, as they spread through themenaand beyond, the uprisings provided historically linked examples of a growing global consciousness, a "global" we.

Whistleblowing and nonviolent action have a number of similarities and connections, yet seldom have they been discussed together. There are a number of lessons for whistleblowing from nonviolence, and vice versa. These are raised through a series of points about whistleblowing: that isolated resistance is ruthlessly crushed, that preparation is essential, that formal channels seldom work, that the strategy of mobilization can be powerful, and that whistleblowers seldom bring about change.

The term "nonviolent resistance" is frequently assumed to refer to a single and coherent theory about the proper way to manage conflict. There are, however, two quite different theories subsumed by this general term. One assumes a basic human harmony and denies the morality of or necessity for either coercion or violence. The second regards conflict as normal, even healthy; nonviolence is perceived as an economic way of testing strength and the only limit set upon means is that of threatening or using physical force. Because activists, advocates, and observers often fail to distinguish these views, the effectiveness of nonviolent resistance is frequently impaired. This is because resisters of differing views fail to find a common basis for cooperation and because the spectator is confused by apparently contradictory professions and actions.