The youth edition of Journeys in the Spirit Quakers and the Military explores the provides a range of ideas to use with 12–18 following questions: year olds in a Quaker context. It offers What is the military? What are military activities for one-off sessions or weekends and comes out three times a year. Some values? suggestions are made about age suitability. When do we encounter (see/meet) the Timings are not stated, as this will depend military? on the group and how the activities are used. How did Quakers feel about the military Each issue explores a theme. in the past, and what did they do about
it? Journeys in the Spirit is offered with the intention of providing an opportunity for How do we feel about the military now? exploring, creating and learning in an atmosphere of worship in partnership on our shared journey in the spirit. There are four This booklet, along with the extra resource directions to our spiritual journey: inwards to sheets at www.quaker.org.uk/resources- ourselves; outwards to others; upwards (or youth , provides enough material for a whole is it further inwards?) towards the deeper weekend with young people exploring mystery; downwards to the world we live in. Quakers and the military.
However, by choosing specific activities, you
Gathering Points Page 2 can run a session lasting 45 minutes, a few hours, a half-day, or a whole day.
Starting Points Page 3 Gathering Points should come first, followed by Starting Points, and Ending Points should Reflection Points Page 4 come last; you can do the other sections in any order you like, but try to include at least one activity from each so that you cater for Listening Points Page 5 different learning styles and preferences.
Some of the activities are more suitable for Viewing Points Page 5
older teenagers (15-18s), this is stated next to the activity descriptions. For some the Talking Points Page 6 whole group will be together, for some you can divide into small groups, for others into Action Points Page 7 pairs and some are for individual reflection. All of this will be indicated.
Worship Points Page 6 If you have access to a projector, the short videos, images and quotes would be better
displayed on this than on a small screen or Ending Points Page 7 copied onto handouts.
These exercises are meant to encourage the group to be energised, focused, and to start to think about the theme. Start with the energiser The Sun Shines On.... , then Spectrum, and then do the focuser Counting Together . If you have lots of time, you can also do Two Truths One Lie, and Clapping in Unison. If later during the session you think the group needs to re-energise, return to The Sun Shines On. If the group needs to re-focus then do Counting Together, or Clapping in Unison. These activities are all set out below.
The Sun Shines On... Stand in a tight circle, facing inwards. Someone starts in the middle, and says ‘The sun shines on’ followed by a description e.g. ‘anyone wearing a T-shirt’. Anyone wearing a T-shirt then has to swap places with anyone else wearing a T-shirt. You can’t swap places with the person next to you. The person in the middle tries to find a space – if they succeed, the person who didn’t find a space becomes the one in the middle, and it’s their turn to say ‘The sun shines on...’. After a few general turns (which can include ‘The sun shines on everyone’!), the facilitator can try a few relating to the theme, e.g. ‘The sun shines on anyone who has seen an army, navy, air force or royal marines advert online, on TV or at the cinema’, or ‘anyone who has played an army video game’, or ‘anyone who knows someone in the army, sea or air cadets’.
Spectrum. Indicate to the group an imaginary line across the room. At one end is ‘I completely agree’, at the other end is ‘I completely disagree’ and in the middle is ‘I’m not sure’. After you read out a statement, the group have to stand on the part of the spectrum that matches how they feel. Then ask a few people if they’ll explain to others why they are standing where they are. Ideas for statements: - the main reason that the military run activities for children is to recruit them (get them to join) - these activities are mostly aimed at boys - the military should not be allowed to run activities for under 16 year olds - schools should not allow poppies to be worn around Remembrance Day (November 11) - military toys, such as soldier figures and replica guns, should not be allowed
Counting Together. Stand or sit in a circle, facing inwards. The aim is to count up to ten: you can only say one number at a time and you can’t go around the circle in order. If two people say the number at the same time, the group has to start again. If you reach ten, try twenty. If it’s too easy, try it with your eyes closed.
Two Truths One Lie. Stay in the circle. Each person has to think of two statements about themselves that are true and one that is false. The person next to them has to guess which one is the ‘lie’. This is an interesting exploration of how we judge each other, but could also be related to the theme, e.g. three times when you’ve seen someone in the army, navy, or air force (such as during their visit to your school, on TV or when they were selling red poppies at a train station on Remembrance Day), two of which are true and one is a lie.
Clapping In Unison. Still in the inward-facing circle, the aim of this game is to clap perfectly in unison. Everyone focuses on someone opposite them. No-one should clap before anyone else: the group should feel the right moment and clap as one.
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Ask the following questions one at a time, either to the whole group, writing down their thoughts on a flipchart/whiteboard, or in small groups (encouraging them to discuss and write down themselves).
What is ‘the military’? Hints: break it down into the Armed Forces (army, navy, air force) & the Ministry of Defence (the part of the government that oversees the Armed Forces, including their weapons and other equipment).
What does the military do? Hints: prepare for – and if 'necessary' go to – war, ‘security’ (e.g. at the London Olympics), emergency relief (e.g. during flooding). If the group is older, probe them about the military's primary purpose: using lethal force to defeat enemies.
What are the main values in the military? Hints: discipline, teamwork, fitness and endurance, leadership, following orders/ hierarchy, organisation and orderliness. And of course being able to kill the enemy with lethal weapons.
When do we encounter (see/meet) the military? Hints: when members of the armed forces visit schools; recruitment adverts on TV, on the internet (e.g. in the sidebar on facebook) and before trailers at the cinema; parades in town centres (e.g. on Armed Forces Day in June and on Remembrance Day in November).
Extra questions for older teenagers:
When do we encounter military values? Hints: military-style computer games such as Call of Duty (or Virtual Battlespace2, used to train British Army recruits); the army cadets, sea cadets and air cadets; British Military fitness; the Ministry of Defence’s range of Action Man-style toys.
What do we mean by ‘militarism’ and ‘militarisation’? Hints: ‘Militarism’ is where military capability is prioritised (e.g. in the national budget) and military approaches and values are presented as the best or only solutions to many problems (e.g. the Challenger Troop programme for school pupils at risk of being expelled, who instead of lessons do army-style activities, in uniform). 'Militarisation' is a process (think of other '-isation' words, such as urbanisation) through which we move towards militarism. It’s the growth of the military’s influence in society, in education, in the media etc, and also the ways in which people are encouraged to view the military as normal, necessary, worthy of support (and even heroisation), and not to be questioned or criticised. This has been growing in this country since 2008.
See www.quaker.org.uk/resources-youth for further background information for facilitators
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Pass round these pictures - an army cadet doing ‘field craft’ training (right) and an Armed Forces Day event in Cardiff in 2010 (below). Ask the group to spend a minute on their own in silence, looking at the pictures and thinking about what the people in them might be feeling.
Then ask if anyone wants to share their thoughts. Both pictures are from Wikimedia Commons.
“Acknowledgements”
My thanks to Hollywood When you showed me John Rambo Stitching up his arm with no anaesthetic And giving them “a war they won’t believe” I knew then my calling, the job for me Thanks also to the recruitment adverts For showing me soldiers whizzing around on skis Now pass round copies of the poem And for sending sergeants to our school To tell us of the laughs, the great food, the pay “Acknowledgements” by Danny Martin (right), who was a soldier in the British Army for The camaraderie seven years. I am, dear taxpayer, forever in your debt Ask someone to read it out loud. You paid for my all-inclusive pilgrimage Spend a few minutes all re-reading it in One year basking in the Garden of Eden silence. (I haven’t quite left yet)
Then ask if anyone wants to share their thoughts. Thanks to Mum and thanks to Dad Fuck it, Thanks to every parent Flushing with pride for their brave young lads Buying young siblings toy guns and toy tanks Waiting at the airport 4 Waving their flags For older teenagers
There are quite a lot of anti-war songs and there are some songs criticising the way the military recruits (e.g. focusing on young men from poor backgrounds with few employment opportunities to join the Infantry – the most dangerous position in the Army), but there are very few songs about civilian encounters with the military.
Divide the group into pairs. Ask them to listen to 'I Love a Man in Uniform', by Gang of Four (www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWTn_Rdyd6g). Ask them to discuss any of the lyrics that stand out for them.
Play it again, asking them to focus on the words: The good life was so elusive. Handouts, they got me down. I had to regain my self-respect. So, I got into camouflage. The girls, they love to see you shoot. I love a man in a uniform... [repeated]. This song is obviously about a male soldier. In lots of countries, including the UK, women can join the Armed Forces too, but they are often (e.g. in the UK) banned from roles in which “the primary duty is to close with or kill the enemy”. Can the group see a dilemma for Quakers here, given our testimonies to Peace and Equality? Ask if they think their favourite band or solo artist would write a song on a similar subject. If not, why not?
The head of army recruitment strategy in 2009, Colonel David Allfrey, said: “We take a ten-year span. It starts with a seven-year-old boy seeing a parachutist at an air show and thinking, ‘That looks great.’ From then on the Army is trying to build interest by drip, drip, drip.” Watch some of the videos below (if you don’t have an internet connection, you can download them beforehand using http://keep-tube.com). If you have time, watch them in full; if not, the most relevant bits are indicated in brackets. Search for 'armed forces recruitment' videos on YouTube. Watch one or two (they don’t have to be in English for the main messages to get across). How the Army Cadets is a form of recruitment: www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmkTPfW_yEk (12.08-14.10) Prince Harry compares being a helicopter weapons pilot to playing video games: www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlztfgIpF7g (0.00-0.35/1.10). TV and online army recruitment game: www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFELQ3WwSH8
Ask the group (or in small groups then feeding back) to discuss how these clips make them feel. Ask them if they think video games can make people more supportive/less critical of the military, and/or think more like them, even if they’re not interested in joining themselves? If they don't pick up on it, point out that, like the Gang of Four song, the focus is on boys/young men. However, similarly, girls/young women can be in the cadets and obviously they can play (violent) video games too. If there are military-related films on at the cinema then go and watch one. You might see an Armed Forces recruitment advert before the trailers. How does the film relate to what you’ve looked at?
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This section focuses on Quaker responses to the military.
If the group is lacking energy or focus, do one or two of the exercises from Gathering
Points.
Ask for a volunteer to read this declaration by a group of Quakers to King Charles II in 1660: "All bloody principles and practices we do utterly deny, with all outward wars, and strife, and fighting with outward weapons, for any end, or under any pretence whatsoever" Ask the group if they think these early Quakers are opposing the preparation for war (e.g. training and equipping Armed Forces and encouraging the public to support them) too? Ask how else the declaration relates to what they've looked at and talked about so far (in Starting, Reflection, Listening, and Viewing Points).
For older teenagers: Ask someone to read this line from the brief Armed Forces Covenant (a contract between members of the public and the Armed Forces, written in 2011): 'the whole nation has a moral obligation to members of the armed forces and their families'. Discuss with the group how can we decide about how we respond to the military (whether or not to join the cadets, what to do if the Army visits our school / if there is a military parade in our local town centre, etc), when there is such an expectation for us to be supportive of it?
For five more quotes from Quakers and prompts for discussions about these, go to the additional sheet ‘Quotes from Quakers’ in www.quaker.org.uk/resources-youth under Talking Points.
Sit in a circle. Put any pictures or quotes used in the session, or any drawings etc from the Action Points (see page 7), in the middle. Hold a brief Meeting for Worship together, for ten or fifteen minutes. Before starting, encourage the young people to share anything they want (including talking about one of the pictures/drawings etc in the middle) as ministry. Finish with people holding the hands of the people either side of them.
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If you are able to plan in advance, see if an adult in a local Quaker Meeting would like to speak to the group about how they feel about the military and what an ideal military would look like to them.
After the talk, or instead of it, give the group a variety of materials, including different-coloured paper, magazines and newspapers, pens, colouring pencils, scissors and pritt-sticks. Give them ten minutes or more to make something (a poem, a drawing, a collage) on their own that shows what they would like the military and their encounters with it to be like in an ideal world. Encourage them to think about how the money spent on the military and the talent of its members, could be used differently (e.g. what could the £5.6 million cost of a Challenger 2 tank, with its four highly-trained crew, be used for instead?). And what about the military values discussed earlier – can these be found in other places?
Suggest that they think about whether there might be no military at all, just well-equipped emergency services. Or that the military might still exist, but it wouldn't have any weapons and would have pink (instead of camouflage/khaki) uniforms, and would visit schools to talk about making peace without using violence.
Ask the whole group if they have any ideas for things they could do in the next few weeks to try and make their ideal military become a reality.
Some suggestions: talk to friends and family about their opinions on the military, write to their MP or the Ministry of Defence www.writetothem.com / www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of- defence), (think about organising an event for an Unarmed Forces Day (see http://unarmedforcesday.wordpress.com for inspiration), promote alternatives to military initiatives (e.g. National Citizen Service, the Scouts, the Woodcraft Folk instead of the Cadets).
Undertake the ‘Clapping In Unison’ (from Gathering Points) exercise to encourage the group to centre down after all of these provocative words and images.
Stand in a circle, hold the end of a ball of wool and throw it to someone else, each person saying something that they will take away from this session. The person who received the wool then does the same, and so on, until everyone is holding a bit of the wool/string, there should be a network of wool. Stand in silence for a minute or so. Then place the network gently on the floor. Thank the group for their participation, and encourage them to do the Action Points and to visit the websites listed in ‘additional resources and links’. Have tea and biscuits (or whatever the group prefers) together to finish.
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Ask the group these questions or encourage
them to write their answers individually: Christian Aid:
What was their favourite section? Why? mpower resource for young people www.christianaid.org.uk What was their least favourite? Why?
Was anything missing, that should have Cafod Youth Topics: been included? monthly activities on world issues www.cafod.org.uk What are they going to do as a result of
the thinking they have done? Youth Work magazine: a monthly Christian youth work publication Some questions for the adult facilitator(s): www.youthwork.co.uk
Which section did the group find most challenging? Russell House Publishing: resources for working with young people Was anything missing, that should have www.russellhouse.co.uk been included? What further work could you do on the Oxfam: theme? resources for youth work on global issues www.oxfam.org.uk/coolplanet How will you follow up on things that people say they will now do? Leaveners: Quaker performing arts project
www.leaveners.org
Forces-Watch www.forceswatch.net
War Resisters’ International – Countering the Militarisation of Youth project: http://wri- This issue of Journeys in the Spirit Youth irg.org/programmes/militarisationofyouth Edition was written by Owen Everett. The
Northern Friends Peace Board – Challenging editor was Howard Nurden. . Militarism Concern: http://nfpb.org.uk/current- concerns/challenging-militarism
Journeys in the Spirit Youth Edition web pages The next issue of Journeys in the Sprit www.quaker.org.uk/resources-youth. These include subscription information, the ‘how to use’ Youth Edition will be on peace activism. guide, an archive of previous issues and the It will be sent out 14 October 2013. additional resources for this issue.
Available free by subscription. Contact: CYP Admin, Quaker Life, Friends House, 173 Euston Road, London NW1 2BJ Phone: 020 7663 1013 Email: [email protected]
Website: www.quaker.org.uk/cyp
Published by Children & Young People’s Staff Team, Quaker Life