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and seek corrective action or changes. Movements are usually more concerned with coalescing
concerned groups for a period of time, not forming a lasting community of such groups. These
points are evident in the constant in-fighting and internal conflicts that plague most movements,
whether made public or kept in-house. With movements, emphasis is usually placed on finding
ways to have these groups achieve a temporary unity (to work together) instead of transforming
how they relate to and interact with each other to form lasting, harmonious relationships. Thus,
once a movement has achieved its goal or failed, participating groups usually move on in their
own directions, making movements temporary, not on-going like well-functioning communities.
Sometimes, if there are other shared interests that warrant continued working relationships,
movements will continue on to pursue these. But rare is the movement that will remain intact
beyond addressing targeted issues to enjoy the benefit of groups engaging in lasting beneficial
relationships with each other.
Gandhi acknowledged that some movements can be quite beneficial but that ultimately
everything a movement can attain a well-functioning community will achieve in a more lasting
manner. Would there be a need to organize a series of protest actions in a community that is
genuinely willing to resolve social problems? Satyagraha dictates that were there is a genuine
willingness to address problems, co-operation is a duty. And from the perspective of a
community that considers future generations as its members, it would be better to engage in
building a Truth-seeking community instead of participating in movements that will require
future movements to address future problems -- or even sometimes re-emergence of the same
problems. The implementation of laws to address racial problems confronted in the U.S. Civil
Rights Movement has only seen that many of these same problems continue to manifest: either in
different ways (more subtle and veiled) or in the same ways since many civil rights laws have
been eliminated, weakened, or ineffectively enforced over time. To quote a common saying,
“you cannot legislate the hearts of people.” But if a community genuinely embraces beneficent
change, they will willingly root such change in their hearts, mind, words, actions, interactions,
and more.
From the existence of thriving local communities, a community of communities can be
built that extends to an entire nation -- and maybe even a community of nations throughout the
world. Although possible, this aim is not likely to be achieved in one generation. Instead, it is
through the work of successive generations continuing genuine work toward this goal (through
ongoing community building and sustenance) that it can be achieved. Gandhi acknowledged this
in commenting about his work in Sevagram, a village in India: