Can violence be silent? Explain and give one or two examples for your answer.
Answers
A lot of this is very specific to my situation in life: I’m a white man, among other things. Whiteness and maleness are two of the most dominant power demographics, at least in the United States. As a white man, therefore, I have a lot of privileges that others don’t necessarily have. What feels “neutral” and “passive” to me can really be far from that in others’ experiences. It’s like swimming in a swift, powerful river: if I’m “passive” I can simply float yet be carried rapidly along.
Imagine I’m present when someone who occupies the same power spaces as I, does something objectionable. For example, another man says something about a woman. Perhaps the man says, “I just kiss. I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.”
Explanation:
Violence is the conscious use of physical force so as to injure, abuse, damage, or destroy.[2] Other definitions are also used, such as the World Health Organization's definition of violence as "the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened[3] or actual, against oneself, another person, or against a group or community, which either results in or has a high likelihood of resulting in injury, death, psychological harm, maldevelopment, or deprivation."[4]