Arun Gandhi, grandson of the famous Indian peace activist Mahatma Gandhi, spoke to a crowd of students and community members at Memorial Union Monday night to promote nonviolence.

Throughout the night, Gandhi related stories of his childhood when he lived with his celebrated grandfather in India when he was 12 years old until he was 14. Gandhi’s parents sent him to reside in India during its struggle for independence and live with the peacemaker because he was “quite a feisty 12-year-old,” according to Gandhi.

Growing up in South Africa, Gandhi was the subject of racial prejudice by the two predominate peoples in the area.

“I was beat up by whites because I was too black, and I was beat up by blacks because I was too white,” he said.

His abuse left him angry, which his grandfather later told him to control by turning his negative energy into positive actions.

“Anger is like electricity,” Gandhi said, explaining it is up to the individual whether that energy is used for bad or for nonviolent ends.

Gandhi related a similar story his grandfather had to endure, when he visited South Africa as a younger man and was thrown off a train due to the color of his skin. Though Gandhi’s grandfather’s initial reaction was to respond to anger, he said at this point in his life, he knew violence, whether passive or physical, was not the answer.

“That’s when the idea of justice through nonviolent action dawned on him,” Gandhi said. “Our whole being has to be nonviolent.”

Through this way of life, Gandhi urged the audience that the world can change from the current aggressive culture to a nonviolent life. He suggested that the ideals of non-violence be institutionalized in schooling. Gandhi said he believes children should be taught non-violence from a young age “all the way through university.”

He also explained that passive violence, such as name calling, snubbing and criticizing someone unduly, generates anger in the victim, which incites physical violence.

“Physical violence is visible … passive violence is the one we tend to ignore, yet we [still] hurt people,” Gandhi said. “Passive violence fuels the fire of physical violence.”

Gandhi also said building true relationships also creates goodwill and peace. Where many relationships are selfish, Gandhi said the creation of relationships is to give friendship and hope to others.

Aside from discouraging a punitive prison system, he said that advocating prisons should not punish criminals, but make them better people. Gandhi continued to say the social norm of vengeance, like retaliatory attacks by governments, should be halted in order to create true peace.

“Justice has come to mean revenge,” Gandhi said. “We have [forgotten] that if everything is an eye for an eye, it leaves the whole world blind.”

Not everyone agreed with Gandhi, though, and one student told him in the questioning session after the lecture that he believes war is necessary.

“There will always [be a] need [for] a war somewhere,” the student said.

Gandhi replied that violence is only a temporary success, if at all, adding that Europe still battles with scattered violence and Nazism after sacrificing more than 60 million lives in the Second World War.

“A voice like this is desperately needed in times like this,” Steve Pierce, attendee and employee in the vice chancellor’s office, said. “Stuff like this isn’t on [our] radar … [Peace] is the only thing that can save us, so it has to be a plausible solution.”