Pacifism

Pacifism is opposition to war and violence, even to the point of allowing self-harm rather than a resort to violent resistance. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaigner Émile Arnaud (1864–1921) and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress in Glasgow in 1901. The concept is an ancient one that goes back to the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha), and Jesus. In modern times, it was refined by Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948) into the practice of steadfast nonviolent opposition which he called "satyagraha". Its effectiveness served as inspiration to Martin Luther King Jr. among many others. An iconic image of pacifism came out of the Tiananmen Square Protests of 1989 with the "Tank Man", where one protester stood in nonviolent opposition to a column of tanks. Historians have identified that event as being a key motivation that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall which ultimately precipitated the nonviolent fall of Communism.