On "Us" Against "Them": An Alternative

"'Cultural common sense leads many to believe that the best way to organize every social institution is in the form of a contest,' notes Michael Karlberg of Western Washington University . 'Paradoxically, it also leads many to believe that the best way to reform those institutions is through protest — and other adversarial strategies of social change. Protests, demonstrations, partisan organizing, litigation, strikes, and other oppositional strategies are standard methods for pursuing social change. In more extreme cases, violence and terrorism are also employed.'

"...A basic tenet of Bahá'í belief is that humanity, standing on the threshold of its collective maturity, must develop appropriate new qualities, attitudes, and skills that can carry humanity beyond the simplistic and limited conviction that human beings are aggressive and quarrelsome by nature and can only progress through the adversarial pitting of 'us' against 'them.'"

One Country, "Perspective: TheIndividual and Social Action"