If honest and broadbased discourse about civility can be seen as an encouraging starting point for a change in pubic culture, then 2015 is off to a particularly encouraging start. This January has already seen articles written about civility as it relates to a wide range of topics including local government, protests against police brutality, partisan relations in Congress, and reaction to the attack on Charlie Hebdo. And those subjects are just to name a few.
This is, of course, our first edition of Civility Linkblogging of the year. It is part of our ongoing effort highlight discourse about civility around the web. In the past, we have claimed that our articles come from as wide a cross-section as we can manage of blogs, newspapers, and magazines from the United States and around the world. And this week confirms it. You’ll note, as you read, two firsts: a piece that comes out of the southern African nation of Zambia, and another that comes from a newspaper in Turkey.
If you have an article that you think would be right for future civility linkblogging posts, please do not hesitate to email it to us at [email protected]. Include the title, url, and a short summary, and we will gladly review it for publication.
Now — the list:
Civility in Politics
Posted at the Zambia Daily Nation, January 2, 2015
Conflict resolution is a matter that is taken very seriously in African culture It involves dialogue through proxies and peers. This is a value we should not lose even when we foreign media practitioners who may not understand the significance of Ubuntu.
That is why we very concerned by the growing shrill discourse which at times is downright uncouth and uncivilized…
If for no other reason, civility must be observed to safeguard the cordial political atmosphere in which we can debate and indeed exchange robust barbs. When words are spoken out of turn there is always a mutual obligation for contrition.
Social Media, Communication, and Civility
By Tom Clifford, posted at The Montgomery Advertiser, January 5, 2015
The author’s video of an impromptu “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” protest generated a significantly above average amount of comments, with folks calling the protest everything from “inspiring” to an “idiotic and illegal waste of time.”
But here’s the thing. It provided a respectable and safe environment for people with widely divergent opinions to express themselves. To start a conversation.
And in a city like Montgomery, with its rich and complicated history, and where race relations continue to factor in to most every aspect of life, this can only be a healthy development.
City Program Designates 2015 as the Year of Civility
By James Fenton, posted at the Farmington Daily Times, January 6, 2015
Civility First, a program of the city’s Community Relations Commission, will celebrate a new era of kindness and respect in San Juan County at a public event at the Farmington Civic Center on Friday, Jan. 16.
Sprung from bimonthly discussions between Mayor Tommy Roberts and members of his minority issues roundtable, the program seeks to make Farmington a place where all people feel respected and receive quality treatment in area businesses, as well as in the public square.
13 Milliseconds to Civility
By Carolyn Lukensmeyer, posted at The Huffington Post, January 9, 2015
While Boehner’s words did not ring with wild optimism, the picture of him planting a kiss on Pelosi’s cheek told a different story. In the photo, Boehner clutches an oversized gavel in his left hand, while his right hand is looped firmly around Pelosi’s back. She has her right hand on his shoulder and a Mona Lisa type grin, eyes shut, as Boehner kisses her cheek.
Research last year out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that the human brain can process an image when seen for just 13 milliseconds….
In short, the image of the Democratic and Republican leaders embracing can go a long way toward planting in the American public’s collective mind that there is, in fact, hope of compromise, civility and unity among the individuals trying to lead our nation forward. One quick gulp of that picture, which has been widely displayed on-line and on the front pages of newspapers, implants a sense of hope in this New Year that we can work civilly together.
Countering Blasphemy with Civility
By Mustafa Akyol, posted at the Hürriyet Daily News, January 10, 2015
we Muslims need to get to the bottom of the issue, which is how we shall understand Islamic law in our day and age. What is needed, in other words, is nothing short of a “reform.” But mind you; this is a reform with a small ‘r’ not a capital one, for the matter here is not challenging the authority of a central church, as Martin Luther did in the 16th century. The matter here is to how to renew the interpretation of the diverse traditions of Islam in the light of freedom of speech, freedom of religion and other human rights….
None of this means that Muslims have to be happy with the mockery of their faith. They just have to counter it with civility, rather than rage and violence. To see why, one of the things they can do is to read their Qur’an a bit more carefully.