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Principles and practices of peace education
Principles and practices of peace education

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3.1 Structural violence

A third type of violence identified by Galtung is structural violence. Like cultural violence, structural violence is not always easily visible, but can result in long term, deep injustices and inequities. An example of structural violence in schools might be a requirement for students to pay for a school trip that is beneficial to their course. This might prevent students from low-income families engaging in important educational activities that are more accessible to their wealthier peers. Another example of structural violence in education is found in research showing how Black British Caribbean students are more likely to be excluded from school than white British students and British Indian students (Cremin and Bevington, 2017, p. 21). This structural violence disproportionately excludes young people from particular social groups from education and its potential benefits.

Cultural and structural violence are more difficult to discern than direct violence. They can be ongoing and insidious but nonetheless deeply felt by those who are adversely affected. Both cultural and structural violence can be a factor in direct violence. Standish writes about how cultural violence makes other forms of violence permissible (Standish, 2015, p. 10). For example, racist assumptions becoming a factor in greater exclusions for Black children (structural violence), or students who are not Black feeling emboldened to name call or physically attack Black students (direct violence).

Activity 4 Exploring different types of violence

Timing: Allow approximately 10 minutes for this activity

Look at the diagram below which uses the iceberg metaphor to illustrate how structural and cultural violence might be less visible (that is, under the waterline) than direct violence. Think about the football example described in the case study earlier and answer the following questions (type your thoughts into the boxes in the diagram).

  • Which types of violence does the football example illustrate?
  • How are the different types of violence connected?
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Figure 8 Iceberg diagram
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Comment

Thinking of football as being a game for ‘boys’ exemplifies cultural violence, whilst organising the playground space around football is an example of structural violence. The cultural violence in this example separates childhood into girlhood and boyhood and associates particular preferences and attributes to each group. This links to the structural violence that organises the physical space to prioritise activities associated with boyhood. This affects both the girls whose perceived needs are afforded less value than those of boys, as well as the boys who do not conform to the stereotype of boyhood. As Standish (above) explains, cultural violence can make it seem more ‘permissible’ for direct violence to be used against groups perceived to have less value, particularly when they assert their needs or refuse to behave as expected. This violence might arise from the bullying of children who don’t conform to stereotypes, the opposition of the prioritised group to any challenge to their privileged position, or the frustrations of the group asserting their needs.

In the next activity you’ll build on these ideas, considering further examples of direct, cultural and structural violence.

Activity 5 Examples from experience

Timing: Allow approximately 5 minutes for this activity

Take a moment to reflect on any further examples of cultural, structural and direct violence. Annotate the diagram below with your examples and consider how each type of violence might be linked to another.

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Figure 9 Iceberg diagram
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Being able to identify violence and its effects is an essential critical tool for reflective action to build peace. In the next section you will consider the concept of conflict and how it can be applied in peace education.

CPD sessions

If doing the activity above as a group, it is very important to remind participants to recognise and acknowledge the hurt and injustice that violence causes in all its forms, even if they have not experienced certain types of cultural or structural violence themselves. You might divide your group into smaller groups and allow participants to choose who they work with.

Allow participants to choose whether to feed back. As a group you might reflect on ideas and life experiences of types of violence. You might notice the different ways in which violence might manifest itself in different areas of everyday life, particularly the context in which the group is working.