TRIGGER WARNING: VIOLENCE
15-year-old Elianne Andam was stabbed on a crowded bus on her way to school, apparently by a 17-year-old boy when her friend rejected flowers he was offering her. Elianne tried to intervene in their argument.
We talked about this recently on my Success Strategies radio show. Go here for more info and to listen.
As I write this, I have just learned of a 16-year-old boy being murdered in Luton.
We don't have to keep reading these stories. We don't have to keep seeing them on TV. We can change this situation. Empathy can prevent us from having to hear about this and read about it. Empathy can prevent the senseless, needless death of another young person.
As I have said previously, I think of NVC primarily as a preventative process. A lot of violence can be prevented by use of empathy. And violent situations can be transformed through the use of empathy.
Many parents, probably most, are very caring, hardworking people. They may be tired, they may be stressed, but they still do their best to find time to connect with their children. But sometimes, something is missed.
I have no idea what caused this situation. Sometimes, it's a family pattern. Sometimes, it's a lack of self-esteem. Almost certainly, it's a lack of communication somewhere. And now a young man is in custody. And another young woman lies dead. Another grieving family. Another horrible, preventable killing.
For more about how parents can use NVC and empathy to improve their connections with their children, download Affirmations for Parents today.
Go here to download it from Amazon.com
Go here to download it from Amazon.co.uk
Go here for more about Nonviolent Communiction.
And go here for more from the Blogging Carnival for Nonviolence 2023.
