Five Hopeful Stories from Humankind
Humankind, a book I read and reviewed, ends with a series of uplifting stories about how appealing to compassionate, communal aspects of human nature can move our society forward. What's surprising to me is how unknown these stories are. I consider myself well-read and wasn't familiar with any of them before I read the book:
What happened in the real Lord of the Flies?
Fifty years ago, six boys were shipwrecked for 15 months. This is the real story as written by Bregman and an excerpt directly from the book.
How did 99% of Denmark's Jews survive the Holocaust?
Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz, the 'converted Nazi' told the Danish resistance, who organized and effective escape. Amazing story.
How did the Colombian government convince leftist FARC rebels to put down their arms and come home?
In "Operation Christmas," teams installed nine Christmas trees near where guerrillas moved soldiers and supplies. At night, the trees displayed a message in lights: "If Christmas can come to the jungle, you can come home. Demobilize." Watch the ad: 'Before you were a guerrilla, you were my son.'
What happened in the trenches in Europe during Christmas of 1914?
How did South Africa avoid a bloody civil war and arrive at a democratic post-Apartheid?
Two twin brothers, Constand and Braam Viljoen, were instrumental to peace in South Africa. One was a priest who opposed Apartheid, the other was the General of the South African Defense Forces. General Constand agreed to meet Nelson Mandela for tea and after 6 months of secret conversations decided against pursuing a violent Civil War.
Bregman writes: Mandela talks to Constand Viljoen in his own language 'General,' he says in Afrikaans, 'there can be no winners if we go to war.'
Constand nods, 'There can be no winners.'
'He [Mandela] took my brother's arm,' Braam would later say, 'and he did not let it go.'
BONUS: The Singing Revolution in Estonia
This one is from me. After I graduated from college, I took an epic trip before starting work. I flew into Budapest and flew out of Bangkok three months later, traveling only by land and staying with people I met on couchsurfing.com (the free precursor to AirBnb). It was an unforgettable and amazing trip that affirmed all of Bregman's points on the innate kindness and connectedness of the human species.
One highlight of the trip for me was the two nights I spent in Tallin, Estonia. I was hosted by a local, and her friend, a diplomat, came over and showed me around the country. They proudly talked me through Estonian history and how they had survived both German occupation during WWII and the more prolonged Russian invasion afterwards. How did the Estonia spirit survive? By singing.
Every year, a third of the country would gather for an annual singing event.
The Soviets would censor the song list, but you can't stop tens of thousands of people from singing. And every year, unplanned, there would be an outbreak of the traditional Estonian Anthem. When the time came for the Baltics to declare independence, Estonians left their homes and linked arms, singing. They surrounded the communication tower and took over the broadcast system. And then formed a human chain spanning hundreds of miles.
It's documented in the film: The Singing Revolution, which I watched with my Estonian hosts into the early hours of the morning one night in June 2008. Watching the peaceful protests in Belarus against a blatantly fraudulent election reminds me of the story of Estonia declaring its freedom. I wish the same for the people of Belarus.