The Relevance of Peace Education in Today’s Context

Abstract

This article explores the relevance of peace education in the present day by studying the works of three prominent peace educators. The field of peace education is so broad that it encompasses works of scholars from seemingly different background who however aim at tackling violence in their societies using peace education as a tool for the promotion of social justice. For instance, W.E.B. DuBois’ work focuses on the elimination of racism and racial inequality targeted at African Americans; Friere’s work is geared towards the elimination of oppression in a society with a wide gap between the haves and the have-nots; and Appiah focuses his work on the need for the respect of the other in society towards the attainment of a society where diversity is celebrated. This article recognizes that one of the root causes of most conflicts today is identity and the peace educator’s discussed here have centralized their work on the elimination of conflicts affecting their societies caused by structural or cultural violence targeting the collective identity of a people