The Revolution Will Not Be Violent

Despite the many joys and beauties of the world, there are obviously many problems. The heatwaves, droughts, fires and floods of global warming indicate that if we don’t make large transformations in how we live, nature will make them for us. There are also wars; domestic and sexual violence, mainly by men; housing and cost-of-living crises; and the fiasco that is AUKUS (or more appropriately, USUKA, pronounced ‘you sucker’). There are military helicopters that start bushfires (Australian Associated Press, 2022) but can’t fly firefighters to bushfires and other disasters, (O’Sullivan, 2025) and that divert money from inadequate healthcare systems (Aubusson, 2025).

If we want justice and sustainable peace, it seems that fundamental change to our societies is needed, a revolution in our thinking and practices, not just in our governments but in all levels and facets of society. Can we achieve such a revolution through violence? Some leftists espouse this, although many others don’t, such as Gandhi, who was both an anarchist and anti-violence (Woodcock, 1980:54; Brock, 1991). This article will argue that ‘revolutionary violence’ is a contradiction in terms, suggesting ways forward for Palestine, Ukraine, demilitarisation and nonviolent defence built on contemporary movements such as Rising Tide.