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“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”― Margaret Mead

If you are deeply upset (as I am) by what is happening these days, here is something very easy that we all can do, starting today. Alone we can do nothing; together, anything.

Start a Satyagraha Study Group among trusted friends--no more than about 10 or so, so you can have face-to-face conversations with mutual respect for different viewpoints. Meet either in person or on Zoom or some other virtual meeting app.

What is Satyagraha? The strategy created by Mahatma Gandhi in the early 20th Century for winning back India's independence from British colonial rule and establishing freedom and democracy--but without resorting in any way to violence. It was later adopted by visionaries like Martin Luther King, Jr., Nelson Mandela in South Africa, Lech Walesa in Poland, Vaclav Havel in Czechia, Wangari Maathai in Kenya, and many others.

How is it practiced? Satyagraha consists of three basic practices, with three attributes. Gandhi defined these practices as Ahimsa (nonviolent noncooperation with evil); Satya (speaking truth to power); and Swaraj (self-discipline, self-reliance, and solidarity).

In your Satyagraha Study Groups, you should start by reading and discussing three excellent books on nonviolent resistance to tyranny, in the following order (after which, if you wish, you can choose others):

1. On Tyranny, by Timothy Snyder;

2. Gandhi on Nonviolence, quotes selected and edited by Thomas Merton;

3. From Dictatorship to Democracy, by Gene Sharp.

If the Merton anthology is out of print (as it may be) you can choose among many other books about Gandhi, such as The Essential Gandhi, ed. Louis Fischer.

Make power point presentations summarizing these books, so participants don’t have to buy and read them before attending your meeting. (Snyder’s book is easy; the others, a little more difficult.)

Go forth!