Code of conduct

Code of conduct

Moral dissent is still necessary, even when there is no reasonable expectation of political success.

--Reverend William Barber II[1]

A nonviolent code of conduct is not a general vague declaration that a participant prefers nonviolence. It is a set of ironclad commitments, if not for one’s entire life, at least for the duration of the campaign or movement, and for all actions and communications relating to that campaign. It is a code that may be formulated by a core of campaign leadership or it may be a negotiated agreement, but it is most crucial that this code be promulgated early in any campaign that hopes for clarity and credibility. 

Elise Boulding, a co-founder of the academic fields of both Peace Studies and Women’s Studies, created a process of envisioning a future, and working backward, creating a line of sight toward the world we hope to live in.[2]The idea is to transform a fantasy into a vision by thinking about beginning and ending principles and the steps needed along the way to turn that dream into reality. The chosen endpoint is the achievement of the meta-goal and the timeline is rigorously investigated to create a step-by-step plan.

A signed commitment is best, all the more so a signed document carried on the person of nonviolent resisters. Each campaign may have its own code, often dating back to Gandhi’s list of behaviors, desired and prohibited. The code may be simple, as with the 2015 Campaign for Nonviolence, with its written code and a place for the signature of the participant.[3]

When preparations are centered on coordinating behaviors consistent with the agreed-upon code, these practices become second nature for participants. Neural pathways are created and widened, mental muscle memory is developed, and old instincts can give way to new ways. This is how emergency workers learn “natural” instant responses to presenting calamities—emergency medical technicians, firefighters, emergency room nurses, social workers in dangerous neighborhoods—these professions and many more learn by first grasping the theoretical concepts, then by training, and finally by drills. Each simulation strengthens rock-solid commitment to a code, as emotional and psychological default settings alter and are deepened toward “automatic” nonviolent response to threat, to actual attack, and to assaults on one’s pride or identity. 

When a movement is truly versed in and committed to a disciplined code of nonviolence it possesses unique strength and resiliency. The code is key. It is a document to inform every participant, every nonviolent resister, every member of the media, every agent of law enforcement, and as many others as possible. 

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[1] Barber (p. 20)

[2]Ziegler, Warren L. (1982). A mindbook of exercises for futures-invention.Denver, CO: The Futures-Inventions Associates.

[3]Butigan, Ken; Hall, Ryan (2015). Campaign nonviolence: A grassroots movement for a culture of peace and nonviolence free from war, poverty, racism, climate destruction and the epidemic of violence. Pace e bene.