By Robert Porter
Canadian Centres for Teaching Peace
For decades North Americans have set aside November 11 as a day to stop and contemplate in silence the human sacrifices made during the wars of the past. Many agree these wars preserved our way of life, our freedom and democracy, others suggest that wars in general are not inevitable, and that while certainly some wars were defensive in nature, perhaps they would not have been necessary if much earlier diplomatic interventions were made.
But when it comes to recognizing sacrifices being made, the reasons don’t matter as much as the fact that people died, and people were injured. Harm coming to individuals is always something worth contemplating and reflecting.
How useful is being somber and reflective about something you have not experienced, however? Younger generations who cannot recall war, or who did not grow up with parents whom had experienced war might recall Remembrance and Veterans Day being a day in school where at 11.00am an assembly occurred, where silence would be recognized, and there was always an elderly gentleman from a veteran’s group in a uniform of some variety and it would always be sad.
The kind of sadness in the air during these ceremonies cannot be that of literal remembrance though, since so few youth today have directly experienced the losses of war. Even in America, where two Iraq wars have occurred within a generation, losses are significant but nowhere near as numerous as the world wars. It is the difference between most people knowing someone who has been affected by losses in the war, and the situation in generations past where everyone themselves were affected personally and would know many people who were killed or injured.
If you have not experienced war personally and directly, how can you remember it?
This is a fundamental problem in the reflective nature of the day – most have nothing to personally reflect upon. There is no personal connection, and if anything, feelings of sadness are more of helplessness and despair. How can one be connected to something they themselves have not experienced? How can one deal with the feelings of sadness and helplessness involved in these ceremonies?
There is something missing today in the recognition of war veterans – a practical aspect that one can feel as if there’s something they can do – outside of joining the military, which is certainly not everyone’s desire.
Armed conflicts do not occur without previous smaller conflicts occurring first. These conflicts begin at a personal and/or interpersonal level and work their way up. If there is a way for us to reframe our remembrance, it is to take the collective historical memory of those great losses, and give those losses the respect deserved by doing what we can to ensure such losses are not required again.
Schools need to invest in peace education – beginning with the tools of social interaction that are not considered by the curriculum at the moment to be a subject worthy of instruction. If individuals learn at an early age how to talk, and otherwise interact with one another beyond just easy and “fun” conversations, but also difficult conversations too, violence would be greatly reduced.
This should of course not just be limited to youth. Other generations can also engage at any age with such things as volunteerism, or personal development though community courses.
A society with greatly reduced violence between individuals and groups is a society less likely to jump quickly to the “last resort” of violence and armed conflict.
Lest we forget, we can do something to prevent future sacrifices.
