Dealing with Collective Violence [with Examples from India and Kent State]

Narayan Desai is the head of the Shanti Sena in India. Narayan grew up in Gandhi's ashram, where his father, Mahadev Desai, was Gandhi's secretary for many years until Mahadev died in prison. The Shanti Sainiks had begun their service at a point of high tension between Hindus and Muslims, when almost everyone they met was surcharged with the wrath of communal frenzy. The work of the Shanti Sena was divided into three groups: meeting the leaders of public opinion; rumor fighting; and patrolling. Both the Shanti Sainiks in India and the students and faculty at Kent State who are involved with third party marshaling and the Life Center are consciously and conscientiously involved in a nonviolent revolution. In India the Gandhians often live together in a small community or at a training center. Within the ashram or kendra the Shanti Sainiks deal with their internal problems of pattern maintenance, adaptation, and integration.