# The Constructive Imaginary *Exported from [Holy-Writings.com](https://www.holy-writings.com/) on 2026-06-18 — 1 clipping.* --- > Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: Michael Karlberg, The Constructive Imaginary, bahai-library.com. > ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── > > The Constructive to transcend the opposition against > you with that same constructive > Imaginary resilience that characterized their > response to the duplicity of their > detractors. Peering beyond the > MICHAEL KARLBERG distress of the difficulties assailing > them, those heroic souls attempted > This special issue of the Journal marks to translate the Teachings of the > a moment in a journey by a group of new Faith into actions of spiritual > collaborators exploring the implica- and social development. This, too, > tions of an emerging concept with is your work. Their objective was > profound relevance to twenty-first to build, to strengthen, to refine the > century struggles for social justice. To tissues of society wherever they > understand the nature and purpose of might find themselves; and thus, > this journey, it will help to know a little they set up schools, equally edu- > about the process that led us here. Be- cating girls and boys; introduced > fore considering this process, however, progressive principles; promoted > it is important to note that the collec- the sciences; contributed signifi- > tion of essays in this journal represents cantly to diverse fields such as ag- > only a small number of voices offering riculture, health, and industry—all > contributions at only one moment in of which accrued to the benefit of > a wider ongoing conversation. Many the nation. You, too, seek to ren- > important voices and perspectives are der service to your homeland and > absent from this collection, but not to contribute to a renewal of civ- > all things can be accomplished in any ilization. They responded to the > given setting. This collection of essays inhumanity of their enemies with > thus constitutes an invitation for all rel- patience, calm, resignation, and > evant voices to contribute, over time, contentment, choosing to meet > to this expanding conversation. deception with truthfulness and > This conversation began when, on 9 cruelty with good will towards > September 2007, the Universal House all. You, too, demonstrate such > of Justice wrote a letter to Iranian noble qualities and, holding fast > Bahá’í students deprived of access to to these same principles, you belie > higher education in their country. In the slander purveyed against your > that letter, the House of Justice wrote: Faith, evoking the admiration of > the fair-minded. (italics added) > Recent events call to mind > heart-rending episodes in the histo- The phrase first employed in this let- > ry of the Faith, of cruel deceptions ter—constructive resilience—has since > wrought against your forebears. It been employed by the Universal House > is only appropriate that you strive of Justice in many other letters. Over > 10 The Journal of Bahá’í Studies 30.3 2020 > > time, it has captured the imagination around which many Western liberal in- > of growing numbers of people because stitutions and practices are constructed. > it is pregnant with meaning. This spe- According to this logic, human nature > cial issue of the Journal has emerged is essentially self-interested, so societ- > from conversations among one group ies should be organized in competitive > of friends who have been exploring the ways that harness all that selfish energy > meaning of this phrase, its relationship for the greater good. We see this logic > to other concepts in prevailing dis- expressed in partisan political systems, > courses on social change, and its broad adversarial legal systems, capitalist > relevance to the exigencies of the age. economies, grade-based education > In the reflections immediately be- systems, and even many contemporary > low, the collaborative process that led forms of recreation and leisure. > to this special issue is shared, to under- In my dissertation, I analyzed the > score the value of this kind of collabo- social and ecological consequences > rative inquiry. Some of the more salient of this “culture of contest.” My con- > insights that emerged from this process clusion, in short, was that when most > are also shared. In the latter regard, it social institutions and practices are > should be noted that constructive resil- organized as contests of physical, po- > ience is neither an entirely new way of litical, or economic power, they privi- > thinking about social change, nor is it lege the short-term material interests of > a mere reiteration of previous concep- those who enter the contests with the > tions of social change. Rather, aspects most inherited power. This occurs at > of constructive resilience have been the expense of less powerful segments > explored by a range of previous think- of society, and at the expense of future > ers, and have been embodied in a range generations. The result is widespread > of previous movements. What our col- social injustice and ecological ruin. > lective inquiry has attempted to do is My dissertation also examined the > to bring into focus some of these prior way these unjust and ruinous outcomes > conceptions and illustrations, and as- cause many people to arise in protest. > semble them into a more coherent pic- This is very understandable, and I share > ture that expands our social imaginary. the underlying commitments to social > justice and environmental stewardship > that tend to animate such responses. > The initial point of departure for my Yet oppositional protests can inadver- > own study of constructive resilience tently replicate and reinforce the un- > traces back to my doctoral defense just derlying logic of the culture of contest. > over twenty years ago. My disserta- For instance, oppositional responses to > tion1 examined the competitive logic > > From Adversarialism to Mutualism in an > 1 This dissertation was later pub- Age of Interdependence (George Ronald, > lished as Beyond the Culture of Contest: 2004). > The Constructive Imaginary 11 > > social injustice can reinforce assump- competitive electoral processes that > tions about the inherently competitive emerged in Western liberal societies > or conflictual nature of human beings, are inherently vulnerable to the cor- > along with assumptions about the inev- rupting influence of money, because > itability of interest group competition electoral competitions are expensive > in the social sphere—which consti- to wage. This is a primary reason just > tute suppositional foundations of the and responsible governance has proven > culture of contest. Hence the paradox so elusive in Western liberal forms of > of protest in a culture of contest.2 The democracy. One response to these en- > culture of contest gives rise to myr- demic injustices is through protest. An- > iad injustices, which in turn give rise other response is to begin constructing > to oppositional dissent, which in turn new democratic electoral forms that > reinforces the underlying logic of the are free from competition and parti- > culture of contest that gives rise to the sanship.4 To the extent that new social > injustices in the first place. forms such as this can attract people > The way to transcend this paradox, away from prevailing ones, growing > I argued, is through a non-adversar- numbers of people can withdraw their > ial approach focused on the active participation from unjust social forms, > construction of radically new institu- which would eventually collapse of > tions and practices organized around attrition. The culture of contest might > a more just logic.3 For instance, the thus be transcended, over time, through > the construction of emancipatory social > 2 See Michael Karlberg, “The Para- forms that supplant oppressive ones. > dox of Protest in a Culture of Contest.” In my dissertation, I offered examples > 3 A broadly similar argument was that illustrate this dynamic. > advanced in the early twentieth century After I made this point, one of my > by Gandhi, in his booklet titled Construc- examiners countered, “That may work > tive Programme: Its Meaning and Place under some favorable conditions, but > (1941). This argument was echoed by > surely it’s impossible under conditions > Carl Boggs’ articulation of the concept > of violent repression.” As we were > prefigurative politics in his essay “Revo- > lutionary Process, Political Strategy, and > speaking, on the other side of the plan- > the Dilemma of Power”; and this concept et, the Bahá’ís of Iran were patiently > of prefiguration was later taken up to some advancing constructive processes of > degree within various feminist and New > Left movements. Such ideas have more the sixth chapter of my most recent book, > recently been engaged by contemporary Constructing Social Reality (see pages > social change theorists such as Majken Jul 180–188). > Sørensen (see “Constructive Resistance: 4 For an illustration of a proven > Conceptualizing and Mapping the Ter- electoral system that is entirely free from > rain,”) and Karuna Mantena (see “Gandhi partisanship and competition, refer to Mi- > and the Means-Ends Question in Politics”). chael Karlberg, “Western Liberal Democ- > I engage this literature more directly in racy as New World Order?” > 12 The Journal of Bahá’í Studies 30.3 2020 > > social transformation under conditions individual about the ongoing challenge > of violent repression. But this story had of racism in the United States. In that > never been told through the lens I ar- letter, the House of Justice expressed > ticulated in my dissertation. After my its hope > defense, I realized the need to do that. > As I began to write about this, I re- that those friends in the United > ceived a copy of the 9 September 2007 States who resolve to renew their > letter from the Universal House of commitment to uprooting racism > Justice alluded to above. When I read and laying the basis for a society > the phrase constructive resilience, it that reflects interracial harmony > crystalized in my mind precisely what can draw insight and inspiration > I was trying to articulate. This phrase from the unwavering resolve of > distills what it means to exercise trans- the Bahá’ís in Iran. The messag- > formative constructive agency under es written to the friends there in > conditions of violent repression. So the recent years, most of which have > phrase provided the organizing logic, been translated into English and > and the title, for the article I was writ- are publicly available, are instruc- > ing, which was subsequently published tive in this regard. For almost > by the journal Peace & Change. two centuries, and particularly > the last four decades of relentless > oppression, the Bahá’ís in Iran > Over the decade that followed, the have remained forward-looking, > Universal House of Justice used the dynamic, vibrant, and committed > phrase “constructive resilience” in oth- to serving Iranian society. They > er letters, and the concept was becom- have refused to allow apprehen- > ing the object of increasing attention. sion and anxiety to take hold or let > In 2017, I invited three friends whose any calamity perturb their hearts. > scholarship is relevant to this concept They have drawn on the highest > to help organize a conference panel on reservoirs of solidarity and collab- > the topic. Insights generated from that oration and responded to oppres- > experience then informed several pre- sion with constructive resilience, > sentations at other conferences. Soon eschewing despair, surrender, > after, we planned an intensive weekend resentment, and hate and tran- > seminar on this concept, in Washing- scending mere survival, to trans- > ton, D.C., with a dozen people from as form conditions of ignorance and > many disciplines. Insights generated prejudice and win the respect and > from the D.C. seminar informed further collaboration of their fair-minded > conference presentations and further countrymen. Those believers in > conversations among the four of us. the United States who have la- > On 4 February 2018, the Universal bored so persistently to promote > House of Justice wrote a letter to an race unity, especially the African > The Constructive Imaginary 13 > > American friends, should appre- nine-person panel for a plenary audi- > ciate in their own efforts over the ence at the 2019 annual conference of > years the same expression of con- the Association for Bahá’í Studies in > structive resilience, born of their Ottawa. It is those nine panelists who > great love for Bahá’u’lláh, and see are the contributors to this special issue > in the recent turmoil opportunity of the Journal. > rather than obstacle. The process alluded to above was a > journey of mutual learning character- > In the months following the arrival ized by ongoing consultative inquiry, > of this letter, the four friends alluded to the testing of ideas in diverse spaces > above organized another seminar, held with diverse groups, reflection on ex- > at the Highlander Research and Educa- perience, and refinement of language, > tion Center in Appalachian Tennessee. concepts, and approaches. Of course, > Of the thirty participants who attended this conversation has not yet widened > this seminar, the majority were African enough to embrace all relevant voices > American, and the preceding passage and perspectives. For instance, Indige- > was one of the focal points of our dis- nous voices will further illuminate the > cussions. How can the constructive concept of constructive resilience in > resilience of African Americans be powerful ways. Nonetheless, this ini- > articulated in ways that illuminate this tial conversation has already carried its > powerful concept and illustrate its uni- participants to a place at which no in- > versal relevance? And where can we dividual, journeying alone, could have > see other expressions of constructive arrived. > resilience that further illuminate our The essays collected here provide an > understanding? opportunity to share a range of insights > Immediately following the High- and reflections that have arisen, so far, > lander seminar, a workshop was offered on this path. By sharing these, we hope > in Atlanta at the annual conference to inspire others to contribute further > of the Association for Bahá’í Stud- on this path of learning. > ies, and approximately one hundred In sharing our initial insights, we’ve > people attended. Some months later, adopted a less formal, less academic > another weekend gathering was held style than is typical of academic jour- > in Washington, D.C., with nine partic- nals. We’ve come to appreciate that it’s > ipants who had attended the previous rarely possible to “persuade” people > D.C. or Highlander seminars and had of the value of constructive resilience > expressed an interest in further engage- through formal academic arguments. > ment. That latter gathering in D.C. led Though constructive resilience is an > to other academic presentations, along eminently rational concept, recognizing > with the development of two univer- this requires a degree of intuition and in- > sity courses. Those same nine partici- spiration. Constructive resilience speaks > pants were also invited to serve on a as much to the heart as the intellect. > 14 The Journal of Bahá’í Studies 30.3 2020 > > In keeping with this approach, I’m rights movement, or the Arab Spring. > also dispensing, in this introductory es- Though the means of struggle dif- > say, with the convention of summariz- fer between the first and second set > ing each subsequent essay. The essays of stories, the storylines are similar in > speak for themselves. Instead, I was important ways. In both sets of stories, > asked by my peers to share some of a population that considers itself op- > my personal insights into constructive pressed in some way engages its adver- > resilience, which have emerged along sary directly in a confrontation leading > this path of learning. to victory or defeat. Such stories have > shaped our social imaginary when it > comes to how people can struggle for > For me, the concept of constructive change. This does not mean the sub- > resilience expands what social theo- stance of these stories is imaginary. > rists call our “social imaginary”—our They reflect the experiences of count- > ability to imagine and enact new possi- less revolutionaries and activists, many > bilities in the pursuit of social change. of whom deserve our respect and admi- > Imagination is a way of knowing. Our ration. But these dominant narratives > imaginations are informed, in part, by displace other stories we could tell > the stories we hear, including stories about other ways people have strug- > about who we are and how we got here. gled for social change, thereby limiting > At my doctoral defense, my exam- our conception of what such struggles > iner had never heard the story I later have looked like in the past and what > learned to tell about the Bahá’ís in Iran. they might look like in the future. > Nor, it seems, had she heard any other > stories of radical constructive agency > coupled with resilience under condi- To understand the implications, it helps > tions of violent repression. So, those to contrast constructive forms of agen- > possibilities lay outside the boundaries cy with contentious forms of agen- > of her social imaginary. cy—a distinction that other theorists of > Stories of social change have sel- social change have also made.5 In the > dom been told in ways that bring simplest terms, constructive agency is > constructive resilience into focus. focused on building a more just social > Consider the many stories that tend to order. Contentious agency is focused > circulate about violent insurrections. on disrupting or dismantling an unjust > Think, for instance, of the American social order. Both forms of agency can > and French revolutions, the Haitian be motivated by commitments to so- > revolution, or the Bolshevik and Mao- cial justice and by the corresponding > ist revolutions. We also hear many sto- > ries of nonviolent resistance. Think, > for instance, of the struggle for inde- 5 See, for instance, Sean Chabot > pendence in India, or the U.S. civil and Stellan Vintagen, “Decolonizing Civil > Resistance.” > The Constructive Imaginary 15 > > pursuit of social change. But the means have entailed heroic struggle under the > by which these ends are pursued differ. most oppressive conditions, and these > The distinction between constructive protagonists have contributed as much > agency and contentious agency need not to the empowerment of African Amer- > be laden with value judgments. “Con- icans as have contentious campaigns > structive” is not a synonym for “good” of nonviolent resistance. Indeed, these > in this context and “contentious” is not a constructive struggles endowed the Af- > synonym for “bad.” Both forms of agen- rican American community with many > cy may be needed in the broader scheme of the material, social, and organiza- > of things. Yet, this distinction enables us tional resources that made campaigns > to notice forms of struggle that other- of nonviolent resistance possible.6 > wise go unnoticed; to see protagonists Likewise, the stories about Indige- > who otherwise go unseen; to tell stories nous struggles for justice that tend to > that otherwise go untold; to imagine fu- circulate most widely on this continent > tures that otherwise go unpursued. tend to be stories such as the armed > For instance, the story I learned in standoff of American Indian Movement > school about the struggle for racial jus- activists at Wounded Knee, South Da- > tice in the United States is the story of kota, in 1973; or the armed standoff of > nonviolent protests and civil disobedi- Mohawk activists in Oka, Quebec, in > ence that culminated in the 1960s. It’s 1990; or nonviolent protests against oil > a remarkable story that needs to be told, pipeline construction through Indige- > with countless heroes who deserve our nous lands in North Dakota and British > admiration. More recently, the Move- Columbia in recent years. In contrast, > ment for Black Lives is being told as stories rarely circulate about the many > the next chapter in this story of non- ways Indigenous Nations across the > violent resistance, with a new genera- continent are, at various paces, con- > tion of heroes who clearly deserve our structing new systems of governance, > admiration. law, education, health care, and natu- > While these stories need to be told, ral resource management.7 In many > so too do the stories of countless Afri- > can Americans who have struggled in 6 For two excellent examples of re- > other ways, for many generations, to cent scholarship on African American con- > construct elements of a more just social structive agency, see Jessica Gordon Nem- > order. Those elements include schools bhard, Collective Courage: A History of > and colleges, churches and hospitals, African American Cooperative Economic > businesses and banks, economic co- Thought and Practice; and Monica White, > operatives and associations of mutual Freedom Farmers: Agricultural Resis- > aid, along with entirely new patterns of tance and the Black Freedom Movement. > community life, new cultural forms, and 7 Refer, for example, to Jody > new artistic expressions—all of which Wilson-Raybould, From Where I Stand: > value Black lives. These endeavors Rebuilding Indigenous Nations for a > Stronger Canada; Paul Boyer, Capturing > 16 The Journal of Bahá’í Studies 30.3 2020 > > cases, these constructive and resilient an essential characteristic of sustained > expressions of collective agency are movements for social change.8 > based on spiritual principles and tra- The constructive struggle of African > ditional practices that were assault- Americans has repeatedly encountered > ed under colonialism, survived, and such repression, as in the 1929 destruc- > are now being adapted to new social tion of the prosperous Greenwood dis- > conditions. trict in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the mas- > In sum, stories of constructive re- sacre of its residents; or the destruction, > silience—among Indigenous peoples, two years later, of the prosperous town > within the African diaspora, and among of Rosewood, Florida, and the massa- > many other marginalized populations – cre of its residents. More broadly, the > have been widely ignored until quite resurgence of organized racism fol- > recently. Stories of this nature now lowing the brief period of postbellum > need to be widely told, to enrich our Reconstruction—a resurgence that in- > understand of the past and present, and cluded the rise of the Ku Klux Klan, > to expand the horizon of possibility in the systematic disenfranchisement of > the future. Black voters, the passing of Jim Crow > segregation laws, and the spread of > lynching as a form of intimidation and > One insight we gain from such stories social control—is an expression of this > is that radical constructive agency in same dynamic. > the face of oppression, just like conten- When we examine, in this context, > tious agency in the face of oppression, the constructive agency of the African > is frequently met by acute acts of vio- American community, we can appreci- > lent repression. This should not be sur- ate the profound resilience that com- > prising. When people work to construct munity has shown over many genera- > elements of a more just social order, tions. And as we do this, we can begin > those who benefit from the old order to seek out, recognize, or listen to other > will notice. Among those who benefit expressions of constructive resilience > from the status quo, remarkably, some throughout history. Think, for instance, > will experience a moral awakening and of the earliest Christian communities. > support the cause of justice. Others will As those communities focused on the > attempt to defend the status quo by re- construction of radically new, and > pressing the struggle for change—even more just, patterns of community life, > when that struggle is pursued through they experienced brutal repression that > entirely constructive means. In the was sustained for generations. In the > face of such repression, resilience is face of such repression, their radical > > Education: Envisioning and Building the 8 For a discussion of resilience > First Tribal Colleges; and Clint Carroll, in nonviolent movements, see Kurt > Roots of Our Renewal: Ethnobotany and Schock, “The Practice and Study of Civil > Cherokee Environmental Governance. Resistance.” > The Constructive Imaginary 17 > > constructive agency required powerful form of governance by which it orga- > forms of resilience. nizes its affairs through elected assem- > blies at local, national, and internation- > al levels. Bahá’í elections, in which > The story of the Bahá’ís in Iran, allud- voters have true freedom of choice, > ed to above, is another story of radi- are entirely free of competition and > cal constructive agency and resilience its trappings of partisanship, money, > that expands our social imaginary. It ego, and self-interest. In Iran, women > also invites us to consider where this and men have served side by side on > constructive resilience comes from and elected assemblies despite cultural pro- > what sustains it. hibitions against such a practice, even > In this regard, Bahá’ís believe that as Blacks and Whites did in the U.S. > recognition of the oneness of human- South under Jim Crow segregation or > ity is the primary spiritual and social in South Africa under apartheid, and > challenge of this age and that justice as members of all castes do in cultures > must become the central organizing that perpetuate the caste system. This > principle of a new social order derived administrative order has frequently > from this recognition. Toward this end, been attacked, and it has been tempo- > Bahá’ís are committed to a twofold rarily dismantled by some repressive > process of social change that includes governments, including the current Ira- > the transformation of hearts and minds nian regime. Nonetheless, globally, the > as well as the transformation of social project of constructing a more just and > norms and structures. They seek coher- viable model of governance contin- > ence between the means and ends of ues undeterred. And when conditions > social change. They adopt a long-term change in Iran, which they eventually > perspective on change which calls for will, Bahá’ís will resume this aspect of > perseverance in a multi-generational their constructive work in that country. > struggle. They have faith in humanity’s In the meantime, in Iran, Bahá’ís con- > long-term capacity for justice. They tinue to channel their energies into oth- > employ a conception of power rooted er aspects of their constructive work. > in capacity building and focused on the Or consider the experience that > application of spiritual principles to prompted the 2007 letter from the Uni- > systematic processes of social transfor- versal House of Justice quoted near > mation. They recognize that efforts to the beginning of this essay. In recent > pursue meaningful social change will decades, Bahá’ís have been denied > often be met by hostility and repres- access to higher education in Iran as > sion, and they accept that the pursuit part of the current regime’s policy to > of change thus requires sacrifice and block the progress of the communi- > resilience. ty. In response, Bahá’ís constructed a > For instance, the Bahá’í communi- decentralized university, the Bahá’í > ty has been constructing a radical new Institute for Higher Education (BIHE), > 18 The Journal of Bahá’í Studies 30.3 2020 > > in Bahá’í homes and offices across will of the oppressed to advance the > the country. BIHE now offers over struggle. This is a well-understood > one thousand distinct courses within principle in the theory and practice > five associate degree programs, eigh- of nonviolent social change, purpose- > teen baccalaureate degree programs, fully applied in campaigns of civil > and fifteen graduate degree programs disobedience.9 > ranging across the arts and sciences. Radical constructive struggles, on > Faculty, staff, and students are occa- the other hand, don’t seek to publicly > sionally arrested and imprisoned, and provoke moral dilemmas of this kind. > university materials are confiscated in Yet similar outcomes can still result. > raids. But the Iranian regime has been When constructive struggles are met > unable to destroy BIHE because of its with repression, this too can attract the > decentralized and resilient nature. The moral sympathies and support of previ- > regime is also unable to marshal any ously complacent bystanders and third > moral or legal argument in support of parties while galvanizing the will of > its efforts to destroy the university be- those engaged in the struggle. > cause of BIHE’s purely peaceful and This principle is illustrated clearly > constructive nature. This is yet another by the Bahá’í community in Iran, which > expression of constructive resilience. has encountered a genocidal campaign > of repression from its inception, yet > has continued to grow and advance > These stories are recounted not to val- in a resilient manner, giving rise to a > orize the struggles of any given people global movement attracting the support > relative to the struggles of others, but of an ever-expanding cross-section of > to bring to light new insights in ways humanity now engaged in radical con- > that expand our social imaginary. An- structive work in every country. > other of these insights emerges as we Every wave of repression Bahá’ís > return to a comparison of constructive have encountered in Iran has tended > and contentious agency. to increase awareness of, sympathy > Contentious nonviolent tactics, for, and interest in the Bahá’í Cause— > such as civil disobedience in the face both within Iran and around the world. > of unjust laws, are intended, in part, to For instance, in recent decades, as the > set up a moral dilemma within a pop- Iranian authorities have implemented > ulation. In the face of the dilemma, increasingly desperate measures to re- > those who benefit from unjust laws press Bahá’ís, the wider population of > must choose to either support or re- Iran has become increasingly willing > press the movement for justice. When to defend Bahá’ís and increasingly at- > repression occurs, it often attracts the tracted to the Faith. Indeed, far more > moral sympathies and support of pre- > viously complacent bystanders and > third parties, while galvanizing the 9 See, for instance, Gene Sharp, > The Politics of Nonviolent Action. > The Constructive Imaginary 19 > > Iranians are now identifying as Bahá’ís well understood that movements are > than at any time in the history of that most effective when such knowledge is > country, even though becoming a imparted to their participants through > Bahá’í is now considered by the regime systematic forms of training, which > to be a crime of apostacy punishable by mobilize people to take creative ini- > death.10 As a result of these dynamics, tiatives within a shared framework of > many Bahá’ís in Iran have been gal- activism. Again, a growing body of ac- > vanized to new heights of consecrated ademic and activist literature has been > action. examining this theme.12 > All these processes could be seen, > for instance, when leaders of the U.S. > Another insight that emerges as we Civil Rights Movement began adapt- > compare constructive and contentious ing insights from Gandhi’s nonviolent > approaches to transformative change movement in India to their own strug- > is the essential role that learning and gles, even as protagonists of the U.S. > training play in both. Among nonvio- struggle continued generating new > lent resistance scholars and activists, insights while developing correspond- > it is now well understood that contem- ing systems for training movement > porary movements can learn from past participants. Today, such processes are > movements, even as they generate new playing out globally through myriad > knowledge and insight within their movements of nonviolent resistance, > own social contexts, which can in turn linked to a growing body of literature > contribute back to the collective store on nonviolent praxis, promulgated > of knowledge that future movements through centers of nonviolent training > are able to draw on. Indeed, there is that are multiplying in formal and in- > an entire academic field now focused formal spaces and online settings. > on “social movement learning,” along The radical constructive agency of > with activist journals and websites de- the worldwide Bahá’í community is > voted to this theme.11 In addition, it is advancing through a parallel dynamic > that intersects with these other process- > 10 For evidence of these claims, refer > es. Drawing on a century and a half > again to Karlberg, “Constructive Resilience.” of its own experience, as well as on > 11 Refer, for instance, to Maria Is- > abel Casas-Cortés, Michal Osterweil, and 12 Refer, for example, to Larry Isaac, > Dana Powell, “Blurring Boundaries: Rec- Daniel Cornfield, Dennis Dickerson, James > ognizing Knowledge-Practices in the Study Lawson, and Jonathan Coley, “‘Movement > of Social Movements”; and Laurence Cox, Schools’ and Dialogical Diffusion of Non- > “Movements Making Knowledge: A New violent Praxis: Nashville Workshops in the > Wave of Inspiration for Sociology?” See Southern Civil Rights Movement”; and > also the activist journals Reflections on a Mark Engler and Paul Engler, This Is an > Revolution, and Interface: A Journal for Uprising: How Nonviolent Revolt Is Shap- > and about Social Movements. ing the Twenty-First Century. > 20 The Journal of Bahá’í Studies 30.3 2020 > > accumulated bodies of knowledge and articulated independently, shortly after > experience beyond the Bahá’í commu- that gathering, by Michelle Alexander, > nity, Bahá’ís have developed a network a prominent voice in the U.S. struggle > of training institutes in every region for racial justice. In a New York Times > of the world that prepare and mobi- opinion piece titled “We Are Not the > lize people to take creative initiatives Resistance,” she acknowledges the role > within a shared framework of activ- of resistance in struggles for social jus- > ism. This decentralized system makes tice, but she cautions, “Resistance is a > available an accumulating global body reactive state of mind. While it can be > of experiential knowledge, even as its necessary for survival and to prevent > local participants continually contrib- catastrophic harm, it can also tempt us > ute new insights to that growing body to set our sights too low.” Elaborating > of knowledge. In addition, Bahá’ís are on this theme, she explains: > increasingly drawing on this body of > knowledge as they participate in, and Those of us who are committed to > contribute insights to, wider discourses the radical evolution of American > on social change. democracy are not merely resist- > ing an unwanted reality. To the > contrary, the struggle for human > Yet another insight worth noting is the freedom and dignity extends back > way stories of constructive resilience centuries and is likely to continue > imbue the concept of “resistance” with for generations to come. In the > new meaning. Within the narrative of words of Vincent Harding, one of > contentious agency, resistance is what the great yet lesser-known heroes > movement activists engage in, in re- of the Black freedom struggle, > sponse to oppressive social forces. But the long, continuous yearning and > within the narrative of constructive reaching toward freedom flows > agency, resistance is what the con- throughout history “like a river, > structive movement encounters from sometimes powerful, tumultuous, > those defending the status quo. In other and roiling with life; at other times > words, within the latter stories, creative meandering and turgid, covered > movements for a more just social order with the ice and snow of seem- > are the streams and rivers of historical ingly endless winters, all too often > progress. Those who try to obstruct streaked and running with blood.” > such currents of progress constitute the Harding was speaking about > resistance—like obstinate stones in the Black movements for liberation in > path of a river. America, but the metaphor applies > This insight emerged through equally well to the global struggle > conversations on constructive resil- for human dignity and freedom. > ience at the Highlander Center, al- (Alexander) > luded to above. The same insight was > The Constructive Imaginary 21 > > “Every leap forward for American her husband, like so many White men > democracy,” she continues, “has been of his generation, was a closet member > traceable to the revolutionary river, of the Ku Klux Klan. > not the resistance.” “Another world is But Bina Mae was a woman of faith > possible,” she concludes, “but we can’t whose reading of the Bible centered on > achieve it through resistance alone.” living a virtuous life and enacting the > social-justice gospel. She sent her hus- > band packing. She opened her home > These social dynamics alluded to by to Black residents of her town. When > Michelle Alexander, above, derive she traveled south of the Mason-Dix- > from basic expressions of the human on line, she rode in the back of the bus > spirit. The aspiration to contribute to express solidarity with Black folk. > constructively to the betterment of the These were not popular things for a > world is one of those. So, too, is the White woman to do at that time. She > quality of resilience in the face of ad- likely paid a price. Given her hard- > versity. And we can see both manifest scrabble background and the many > in myriad ways, in countless individ- challenges she faced throughout her > uals past and present. In this sense, life, she was clearly a resilient woman. > while constructive resilience can be a Bina Mae helped raise my moth- > characteristic of entire movements, it er and imparted these values to her. > is also a quality of the individuals who When my mother came of age during > advance those movements. Thus, the the turbulent 1960s, she aligned her- > story of constructive resilience is also self with the Civil Rights and Antiwar > the story of individuals. Movements. While pregnant with me > I grew up hearing a story about my in the late sixties, she began attend- > great-grandmother, Bina Mae Collins, ing meetings to learn about the Bahá’í > who was born and raised in Springfield, Faith, which she embraced and told her > Illinois, in the 1890s. Her father was a grandmother about. Upon hearing this, > coal miner with eleven children, so she Bina Mae remembered ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s > did not come from a family of means. visit to Chicago half a century before, > She had little formal education. Given in 1912. Bina Mae must have read an > that Illinois had only abolished slavery article at the time, in an Illinois news- > in 1848, she saw the ongoing violent paper, about His visit. ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s > racism of her times, including a lynch- teachings about the oneness of human- > ing she witnessed as a child and the ity resonated with her to the extent she > 1908 massacre of Springfield’s Black would remember His visit so many de- > residents. She married a man who cades later. > turned out to be a compulsive gambler Bina Mae also helped care for me > and, as a result, she struggled to raise when I was young. She passed away > her own daughters in conditions of when I was six, and she figures in some > ongoing poverty. She also learned that of my earliest memories. The stories > 22 The Journal of Bahá’í Studies 30.3 2020 > > my mother told about her shaped my Boggs, Carl. “Revolutionary Process, > social imaginary. Along with her re- Political Strategy, and the Di- > silience, Bina Mae tried to contribute lemma of Power.” Theory and > constructively, in the ways she could, Society, vol. 4, 1977, pp. 359– > to bending the moral arc of the uni- 393. > verse toward justice. Her story helped Boyer, Paul. Capturing Education: > shape my early imagination about who Envisioning and Building the > I was and what I could do. The stories First Tribal Colleges. Salish > of nonviolent social movements I later Kootenai College P, 2015. > heard, including my mother’s support Carroll, Clint. Roots of Our Renewal: > for those causes, further expanded my Ethnobotany and Cherokee > imagination, enabling me to envision Environmental Governance. > what was possible through organized U of Minnesota P, 2015. > collective struggle. The stories of rad- Casas-Cortés, Maria Isabel, Michal Os- > ical constructive agency I have since terweil, and Dana Powell. “Blur- > sought out have further expanded my ring Boundaries: Recognizing > imagination, enabling me to envision Knowledge-Practices in the > other means of organized collective Study of Social Movements.” > struggle. Anthropological Quarterly, vol. > If we hope, one day, to transcend 8, no. 1, 2008, pp. 17–58. > the culture of contest that has been im- Chabot, Sean and Stellan Vintagen, > posed by Western modernity—a cul- “Decolonizing Civil Resis- > ture that has inflicted untold suffering tance.” Mobilization: An In- > on humanity and is now liquidating the ternational Quarterly, vol. 2, > environmental security of future gener- no. 4, 2015, pp. 517–532. > ations—it seems to me that we need to Cox, Laurence. “Movements Making > find, tell, and become protagonists in Knowledge: A New Wave of > many more stories of radical construc- Inspiration for Sociology?” > tive agency and resilience. To build a Sociology, vol. 48, no. 5, 2014, > new world, we need to expand our con- pp. 954–971. > structive imaginary. Engler, Mark and Paul Engler. This > Is an Uprising: How Nonvi- > olent Revolt Is Shaping the > W C Twenty-First Century. Nation > Books, 2016. > Alexander, Michelle. “We Are Not the Gordon Nembhard, Jessica. Collective > Resistance.” The New York Courage: A History of Afri- > Times, 21 Sept. 2018. nytimes. can American Cooperative > c om /2018/0 9/21/o pi n ion / Economic Thought and Prac- > sunday/resistance-kavana- tice. Pennsylvania State UP, > ugh-trump-protest.html. 2014. > The Constructive Imaginary 23 > > Isaac, Larry et al. “‘Movement Schools’ and Dialogical Diffusion of Nonviolent > Praxis: Nashville Workshops in the Southern Civil Rights Movement.” > Nonviolent Conflict and Resistance: Research in Social Movements, Con- > flicts and Change, vol. 34, 2012, pp. 155–184. > Karlberg, Michael. Beyond the Culture of Contest: From Adversarialism to Mutu- > alism in an Age of Interdependence. George Ronald, 2004. > ———. Constructing Social Reality: An Inquiry into the Normative Foundations > of Social Reality. Association for Bahá’í Studies-North America, 2020. > ———. “Constructive Resilience: The Bahá’í Response to Oppression.” Peace & > Change, vol. 35, no. 2, 2010, pp. 222–257. > ———. “The Paradox of Protest in a Culture of Contest.” Peace & Change, vol. > 28, no. 3, 2003, pp. 319–347. > ——— . “Western Liberal Democracy as New World Order?” The Bahá’í World: > 2005–2006, edited by Robert Weinberg, Bahá’í World Center Publica- > tions, 2007, pp. 133–156. > Mantena, Karuna. “Gandhi and the Means-Ends Question in Politics,” Occasional > Papers of the School of Social Science, no. 46. https://www.ias.edu/sites/ > default/files/sss/papers/paper46.pdf > Schock, Kurt. “The Practice and Study of Civil Resistance.” Journal of Peace > Research, vol. 50, no. 3, 2013, pp. 277–290. > Sharp, Gene. The Politics of Nonviolent Action. Porter Sargent, 1973. > Sørensen, Majken Jul. “Constructive Resistance: Conceptualizing and Mapping the > Terrain,” Journal of Resistance Studies, vol. 2, no. 1, 2016, pp. 49–78. > The Universal House of Justice. To the Bahá’í students deprived of access to > higher education in Iran, letter dated 9 Sept. 2007. https://www.bahai. > org/library/authoritative-texts/the-universal-house-of-justice/messag- > es/20070909_001/1#018930558 > ———. To an individual, letter dated 4 Feb. 2018. > White, Monica. Freedom Farmers: Agricultural Resistance and the Black Free- > dom Movement. U of North Carolina P, 2018. > Wilson-Raybould, Jody. From Where I Stand: Rebuilding Indigenous Nations for > a Stronger Canada. U of British Columbia P, 2019. > > — *The Constructive Imaginary (Used by permission of the curator)*