The multitude of values, approaches, and opinions in modern society renders it helpless to confront the violent and self-destructive acts of children and teenagers. Confusion and conflict of opinion between parents or even between the same parent's different positions lead to bewilderment and paralysis. Professionals, be they educators, therapists, or community workers, are no more of one mind than are parents. In this book I try to show there is a way out of the stalemate. The answer comes not from one psychological theory or another but from a political-social approach: the doctrine of nonviolent resistance. This doctrine, the philosophical and ideological roots of which are ancient, evolved into a practical, detailed, and consistent theory following the work of Mahatma Gandhi. In his struggle against the discrimination against the colored in South Africa, against religious and class violence in India, and against the British occupation, Gandhi demonstrated the power of nonviolent resistance and its amazing ability to mobilize supporters, to impassion activists, to empower the weak, and to curb violence and oppression. The singularity of this doctrine resides not only in its high moral standards, but also in its success in preventing escalation, which is probably the thorniest problem for any approach that attempts to deal with violent or otherwise extreme behaviors.

The novelty in this book is its translation and application of the doctrine of nonviolent resistance to violent and self-destructive children and adolescents.