October 2: International Day of Nonviolence, a great opportunity for all social groups to take a stand in favor of peace and nonviolence
By Hugo Rodríguez Ghiara – Organization World Without Wars and Violence.
Every October 2, the world commemorates the International Day of Nonviolence, a date proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 2007 in honor of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi, leader of the Indian independence movement and universal symbol of peaceful resistance. But beyond institutional tributes, this day represents an opportunity for social movements, citizen groups, and activists around the world to raise their voices against the many forms of violence that persist in our societies. World Without Wars and Violence took up this banner from the beginning because it coincided with its methodology and aspiration to adapt this struggle to the world we live in today. It organized three World Marches for Peace and Nonviolence and called on societies to celebrate this date.
Nonviolence: more than a philosophy, a strategy for transformation
In a world marked by war, state repression, structural violence, and inequality, advocating for nonviolence means taking a stand against a system that normalizes human pain and suffering. It means demanding justice without reproducing the logic of hatred. It means building alternatives based on care, community, and civil disobedience.
October 2: nonviolence in the face of repression and authoritarianism
Today, activists in Palestine, Iran, Sudan, and Burma face regimes that criminalize protest, censor speech, and brutally repress dissent. In many cases, nonviolent resistance becomes the only possible way to defend life. From hunger strikes to human chains, from peaceful occupations to digital campaigns, the creativity of the people shows that nonviolence can be profoundly disruptive.
This October 2, it is essential to remember that repression does not only occur in distant contexts. In Europe, the increase in anti-protest laws, the criminalization of solidarity with migrants, and the excessive use of police force must also be denounced. Nonviolence requires courage to point out these injustices and build networks of mutual support.
Building peace from the bottom up
Peace is not decreed from offices. It is built from neighborhoods, schools, feminist collectives, unions, and rural communities. Nonviolence involves rethinking the ways we relate to each other, resolve conflicts, and exercise power. It involves dismantling patriarchy, racism, colonialism, and capitalism, which perpetuate violence in all its forms.
This day should serve to strengthen alliances between social movements, to share tools for nonviolent direct action, to highlight struggles that are not covered in the media, and to assert that another world is possible if we build it on the basis of respect, justice, and dignity.
What now?
Commemorating the International Day of Nonviolence from an activist perspective means making a commitment to act. It means asking ourselves how we can contribute from our own environment: are we supporting those who are fighting for their rights? Are we questioning everyday violence? Are we building safe and horizontal spaces?
Nonviolence is not a date on the calendar. It is a daily practice, a political ethic, a way of being in the world. This October 2, let the current struggles mobilize us.
Because in the face of violence, indifference, and fear, collective action and peaceful resistance remain our best weapons. If you want to participate or have your organization coordinate to demonstrate these ideals together, contact us.
