The idea of a global grassroots movement to bring about value changes essential for human survival has been called "pie in the sky." Did the critic intend this to mean "impossible"?

If so, he failed to show why this is so. If he meant "difficult to achieve," like a human being walking on the moon, I would have to agree with him.

At the same time, I believe that such a movement is not only possible, but if we go on as we are, the outlook for human survival for many more years is extremely dim. We are not only currently destroying our life-friendly environment, but we are simultaneously preparing the means for launching sudden global catastrophe.

One of the questions raised in "For All Our Children" in the April issue of the Coastal Post, was "How does a movement change values?"

Although we have some way to go, we can look back and see the considerable changes wrought by the Women's Movement, Gay Rights, Rights for the Disabled, the Environmental Movement, Animal Rights and most notably, the American Civil Rights Movement.

Today-impossible 50 years ago-African-Americans in the U.S. can attend any public school, eat in any restaurant, rent rooms in hotels and motels, vote, run for any office (and be elected as mayors of major cities), including the Presidency of the U.S.

Attitudes of most white Americans were radically changed as the result of the non-violent Civil Rights Movement, led by Martin Luther King, Jr.

Essential to the success of every social movement are the following features:

1. The movement must represent a valid need for change:

a) need for a class of human being to be accepted as full and equal participants in human society;

b) need for a harmonious relationship with the environment;

c) need for wider, more inclusive, communities.

2. While the movement may appear as a threat to the special privileges of a few, it must not threaten the physical well-being or basic human rights of others.

3. Leaders of the movement accept the help and participation of people whose interests are less immediately concerned. Effective feminist leaders accepted male cooperation, gays accepted straights, and one of the slogans of the Civil Rights Movement was "Black and White together."

To make the needed value change, the movement acts in two ways:

1) It must emphasize and celebrate the desired new values-goals, attitudes, relationship, while seizing every opportunity to

2) condemn, degrade, and block the harmful values that feed the defective status quo.

Actions in the American Civil Rights Movement involved not only occasions for Blacks and Whites to unite publicly and positively in demonstrations, religious ceremonies, concerts, etc., but also in active opposition to segregation in restaurants, schools, public transportation, and polling places.

Civil Rights activists deliberately violated segregation laws and customs. Every aspect of segregation was condemned, ridiculed, challenged, and resisted.

The resulting public controversies were seized upon as newsworthy by the media, and the public was given a chance to hear the arguments, to see and compare the actions of both segregationists and integrationists.

The electorate chose the more universal values of unity, humanity before race, mutual understanding, and caring, as contrasted with division, competition, human exploitation, suspicion, and hostility. The laws began to change, as well as attitudes on all levels of society.

The major issue before us today is the need to replace

1) national and religious separation, the glorification of nations and massive violence demanded to preserve national sovereignty, and

2) the greedy quest for money, prestige, and power, and its accompanying waste, plundering, pollution, exploitation, and neglect.

The alternative to militarism-nationalism is world community, embracing the whole human family. To money-questing and its hoped for but not achieved benefits to all humanity, the alternative is to assess the basic physical needs of all humans and to design an economy that is directed straight at filling these needs.

The development of the computer as a tool for gathering, storing, and effectively directing information makes such a human-serving economy eminently practicable, as well as desirable.

The Great Movement's objective is to bring to the attention of a critical mass (influential minority) of the world's people this choice and to present the issue in such a way as to motivate the world's electorates into effectuating world community.

Activities that say "Yes!" include world conferences (already we have seen these on women's rights, global warming, the environment, etc.), world observances- Earth Day, Human Rights Day, equinoxes, solstices, World Day of Thanksgiving, World Day of Forgiveness, Filling Human Needs Day, etc.

Other "Yes" activities include composing and performing songs, dances, drama which exalt and illustrate world community and participation in the Great Caring Movement, creating logos and slogans that promote global caring.

To block the continuation of destructive and divisive values, such as nationalism, ethnocentrism of all kinds, the honoring of fear and hate based "deterrence" and "defensive" violence (militarism, death penalty, weaponry, punitive (as opposed to rehabilitative) incarceration, are some of the following actions:

1) refusal to be recruited or conscripted into militarism;

2) refusal to register for possible conscription;

3) condemning and boycotting rituals designed to exalt nations and national symbols above human life; refusal to honor national flags, loyalty oaths, etc.;

4) publicly proclaiming a shift of highest political allegiance from nation to world community-to-be and to the Great Caring Movement.

Controversies that arise as a result of these activities are most likely to attract media attention. Contrary to much common belief, the media do not need to be confronted with violent and destructive actions in order to pay attention.

The Caring Movement dissociates itself from actions of violence and hostility against humans, including violent opponents, police and military personnel. These are fellow humans and deserve a share of our caring, while we clearly and strongly stand in opposition to all destructive and divisive laws, traditions, institutions, and acts.

Poet Edwin Markham neatly stated long ago what will be the spirit of the Great Movement in his poem, entitled "Outwitted."

"He drew a circle that shut me out-
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But Love and I had the wit to win;
We drew a circle that took him in."