The language of a leader is very different than that of a person intent on "eye-for-an-eye" violence and war. Recently, I re-read a piece on Gandhi's leadership and his use of dialogue with people that brought thousands along with him. "For Mahatma Gandhi, The Dandi March was not just a non-violent weapon of struggle. It was also a means of dialogue and communication with people along the route," writes Madhu Dandavate in his article, "Gandhi's dialogue with a Nation."
On their way to Dandi, Gandhi and his satyagrahis halted for night rest at various villages. He used this interlude to speak to the satyagrahis, the residents of the villages and accompanying journalists about the background of the Salt Satyagraha and wider issues of national importance. He treated the Dandi March as an educative process. He continued this dialogue with the people during all the 25 days of the march. Thrilled by the march, several journalists sent elaborate reports every day. These were well displayed by newspapers and journals. Thus what Gandhi said during the Dandi March became a dialogue with the nation. On their way to Dandi, Gandhi and his satyagrahis halted for night rest at various villages. He used this interlude to speak to the satyagrahis, the residents of the villages and accompanying journalists about the background of the Salt Satyagraha and wider issues of national importance. He treated the Dandi March as an educative process. He continued this dialogue with the people during all the 25 days of the march. Thrilled by the march, several journalists sent elaborate reports every day. These were well displayed by newspapers and journals. Thus what Gandhi said during the Dandi March became a dialogue with the nation."
THE LEADER'S LANGUAGE AND ACTIONS MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE:
Symbolic gestures of kindness do wonders for the spirit of in all of us. Why do the world's most powerful leaders today seem to miss this fundamental human need. Seeing our leaders touch one life---express care for others---- has a rippling influence on everyone. Kindness casts a broad net of influence.
Compassion, caring and communication don't take strategies, handlers, poll forecasts. As the deaths continue to mount --- soliders dying --- while our leaders seem to be scratching their heads, going about their lives while others grieve the losses they have caused. I keep remembering how our leaders have not even had the decency to talk with a mother that has suffered the loss of her son or daughter at times during this war. It seems the least a president could do, especially when his two daughters have not yet enlisted to fight in his "noble cause."
What the Iraq War mothers feel isn't new...
“It was the mothers who suffered to bring these boys into the world, who cared for them in sickness and health, and it was our flesh and blood that enriched the foreign soil. Can you picture the anxiety of these mothers watching at the door for the postman every day for the little letter that was to come from her boy, and the agony and suspense when those letters stopped, and then only to be replaced with a telegram from Washington informing her that her boy was wounded or missing or dead?”
----Mathilda Burling
Testimony before House Committee on Military Affairs, 1928
Oh, the memorable contrast in another president:
"My fellow Americans, let us take that first step. Let us...step back from the shadow of war and seek out the way of peace. And if that journey is a thousand miles, or even more, let history record that we in this land at this time, took the first step." --- President John K. Kennedy "Imagine all the people, living for today... Perhaps someday you'll join us and the the world will live as one."
...You may say I'm a dreamer, but I am not the only one.
Debbe Kennedy
Founder, Global Dialogue Center new book! Putting Our Differences to Work: The Fastest Way to Innovation, Leadership and High Performance by Debbe Kennedy ▪ Berrett-Koehler ▪ Spring 2008 – Hardcover Foreword by Joel A. Barker, futurist, filmmaker and author Paradigms: The Business of Discovering the Future
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