Challenging Constructions of an Enemy: Building Cultures of Peace With Canadian Young Adults

Violence has been a constant reality in most societies throughout history and continues to be normalized as an innate part of the human experience.  Today, millions of people each year are impacted by violence, from individual to societal levels including physical, psychological, and social impacts.  In fact violence is one of the leading causes of death for people aged 15-44 (WHO, 2002). Within this dense and interconnected phenomenon of global violence, the impacts of contemporary armed conflict are reaching far beyond those directly involved in the fighting. Wars, or collective violence, are increasingly impacting civilians and resulting in and or exacerbating many humanitarian crises. According to the Seville Statement on Violence (1986), which was created during a UNESCO meeting of scientists from the international community, humans do not have a natural propensity for violence.  Yet, while the impact of violence continues to be widespread, the spaces to disrupt patterns of violence and transform conflict are shrinking.  Community-based peace organizations are struggling to maintain funding; formal school systems are increasing curricular outcomes in the areas of numeracy and literacy, while excluding explicit focuses on peace studies; and many Western governments have ceased or significantly reduced support for conflict prevention and peace focused work. This research  paper will present findings from an empirical study which focused on violence prevention and peace building with Canadian young adults already engaged in peace work. This qualitative study explored how ten Canadian young adults, who were active volunteers with the Even Wars Have Limits working group of the Canadian Red Cross, have learned to construct their notions of enmity, their contextual understandings of power, and how they can create learning spaces to reflect on and challenge or transform these constructions.  The lack of literature focusing on youth and young adults engaged in peace work outside of formal education structures will also be addressed. The study utilized a collaborative, participatory, and arts-informed methodology to centre the perspectives and voices of the young adult participants.  Specifically, this qualitative research was situated in a critical paradigm.  Central to a critical qualitative approach is a critique of power relations and knowledge constructions (Merriam, 2009).  Within this paradigm, critical methodologies “ seek to draw attention to the relations of power that shape social reality ” (Morrow, 1994, p.59).  Critical methodologies focus on questioning inequalities while seeking collective action or change (Merriam, 2009; Morrow, 1994). In the paper, I will share our collaborative findings, which highlight the influences of socialized norms of violence as a leading impetus towards the construction of an enemy.  I will present our findings within three peace-building pedagogical themes: critical reflection, power analysis, and the nurturing of respectful and equitable relationships. I will conclude the paper with recommendations for adult educators in relation to policy and practice in the area of peace and conflict transformation.

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