Malcolm X by way of Wendell Berry

 Wendell Berry, as you have discovered, is a pacifist.  Strangely, his ethics make me think of the struggle that Malcolm X had with this question:  How MUCH violence is justified in the fight for justice or in the battle against dark forces in the world, however we define those dark forces.

As you may know, he became extremely militant at one point, and felt the only way society would accept blacks was through violent protest and an upheaval of the system.  Later in his life, he changed his mind, and Dr. King and Malcolm X both worked to use nonviolent means.  But this was not an easy change to make, for many reasons.  Check out some of his speeches in this link if you wish to know more about this.

http://www.malcolm-x.org/speeches.htm


Let me give you two images and notice the difference in tone and force in each.  Images are powerful parts of our rhetoric.  Be wise and considerate in your use of them, please.