Mindfulness in Activism: Fighting for Justice as a Self-Reflective Emancipatory Practice
Mishka Lysack
Mindfulness and Social Work June 1, 2009 DOI: 10.1093/oso/9781933478609.003.0012 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key points | Argues that mindfulness is a necessary condition for activists to mature in their passion and mission for justice, and that activists must purposively direct their intent so their actions remain congruent with social justice aims, since activism can be either constructive or destructive in its intent and consequences. |
Abstract
Abstract: Activism is conceptualized as acting as a change agent to transform society through externalized action. As noted by Dorothy E. Smith (2006), ‘‘an activist sees the world in terms of what people are doing— what he is or she is doing and what others are doing’’ (p. 21). However, activism also embodies a transformative and transcendent personal quality of mindful internalized action, variously called conviction, courage, righteousness, or that ‘‘still small voice within,’’ as articulated by Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of India’s movement for independence from British colonial rule. I see mindfulness as foundational to work devoted to the realization of social justice. An activist’s work has the potential to be either poetic and courageous or destructive and blind in its intent and consequences. Therefore, an activist needs to purposively direct her intent in order for her actions to be congruent with social justice aims. The activist who endeavours’ to integrate her consciousness of self with her awareness of societal injustices maintains her usefulness for realizing fundamental social change. Mindfulness can be seen as a necessary condition for an activist to become mature in her passion and mission to fight for justice.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. | 2004 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mechanisms of mindfulness | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective | 2011 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness | 2012 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |