Never Violence! facts for kids

Never Violence! (original title: Niemals Gewalt!) is the name of a famous speech given by the Swedish author Astrid Lindgren in 1978. She gave this speech when she received the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade. It's one of her most important and well-known speeches. In it, Astrid Lindgren spoke strongly against hitting children. Just one year later, in 1979, Sweden became the first country in the world to make a law that said parents could not hit their children.

The speech was first published as a book in Germany in 1978. It was called Astrid Lindgren: Ansprachen anlässlich der Verleihung des Friedenspreises des Deutschen Buchhandels. Since then, the book has been translated into many different languages. In 2009, a German short film also called Never Violence was released on Children's Day. This film was based on a special story that Lindgren told in her speech.

Astrid Lindgren's Important Speech

On October 22, 1978, Astrid Lindgren gave her acceptance speech for the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade. She spoke at the Frankfurter Paulskirche in Germany. Her speech was all about raising children without using violence. At that time, it was still legal for parents in Germany to use physical punishment on their children.

What the Speech Was About

Astrid Lindgren started her speech by saying that violence and war have always existed on Earth. She pointed out that true peace has not. She noticed that politicians often talk about other countries getting rid of their weapons, but not about their own.

Lindgren wondered why so many people want power, revenge, or violence. She didn't believe that people are born evil. So, she asked how people could learn to stop violence. She thought the answer had to start with children. She believed that many dictators, who cause harm, had experienced violence or humiliation themselves. Then, they passed on this behavior to others.

She explained that the adults who care for children decide if they will give them love or violence. Children then learn from this and might pass it on later. Lindgren also said that raising children freely doesn't mean letting them do anything they want. Children still need rules and boundaries. She wished for loving respect between both children and parents.

Then, Lindgren shared a story she had heard from an old woman. When this woman was a young mother, her son did something that she felt needed a big punishment. She told him to go outside and find a stick for her. The boy took a long time to come back. When he finally returned, he was crying and holding a stone. He explained that he couldn't find a stick, but she could throw the stone at him instead.

At that moment, the mother understood how scared her son must have been. He thought she just wanted to hurt him, and a stone would work just as well as a stick. The mother cried and hugged her child. Later, she put the stone on a shelf. It was a reminder for her to never use violence again.

Astrid Lindgren believed that children notice all the terrible things, violence, and unfairness in the world. So, it's very important to show them that things can be different. She suggested that maybe everyone should put a stone on their kitchen shelf. It could be a warning to never use violence. This small act, she thought, could help bring peace to the world.

Why the Speech Was Important

When Astrid Lindgren was going to receive the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade on October 22, 1978, she wanted to talk about raising children without violence. At that time, hitting children was still seen as normal in Germany.

Astrid Lindgren had to send her speech to the prize committee beforehand. They advised her to just accept the award without giving the speech. They thought her speech was too strong and might upset people. But Astrid Lindgren insisted on giving her speech exactly as she wrote it. She said she wouldn't come if she couldn't speak her mind.

How the Speech Changed Things

Astrid Lindgren's speech quickly became known around the world. In her home country, Sweden, she worked with scientists, journalists, and politicians. They all wanted to make sure children were raised without violence.

Because of Astrid Lindgren's speech, Sweden passed a law in 1979 that made violence against children illegal. This was the first law of its kind anywhere in the world! After Sweden, other Nordic countries followed her example. In Germany, children only gained the "right to a non-violent upbringing" in 2000. This was written into their law.

Lindgren's speech also made many people think. More scientists became interested in studying what happens to children who experience violence. Their research later proved that Lindgren's ideas were right. A crime expert named Christian Pfeiffer said that her speech helped change people's minds. This eventually led to the law change in Germany in 2000. After Sweden, many other countries around the world have also made laws against violence towards children. Nepal became the 54th country to do so. As of 2019, Sweden is still working on a program called Never Violence. This program helps other countries make laws against hitting children at home and in school.

The Book About the Speech

Never Violence (original title: Niemals Gewalt!) is also the name of a book that features Astrid Lindgren's famous speech.

What's Inside the Book

The book includes the full text of Astrid Lindgren's speech. It also has an introduction, an ending part, and a timeline of Astrid Lindgren's life. Plus, Lindgren's poem If I were God is published in the book.

How the Book Was Made

The speech was first published as a book in Germany and Sweden in 1978. Since then, it has been published many times. The speech itself has always stayed the same in different editions. However, the other texts in the book, like the introduction or ending, have sometimes changed.

In 2018, a new edition of the book was released in Sweden. It was called Aldrig våld!. This version included Lindgren's entire speech. The introduction was written by Marta Santos Pais, a lawyer from Portugal who works for the United Nations to stop violence against children. The ending was written by Thomas Hammarberg, who used to be a human rights expert in Europe. The cover of this Swedish edition was drawn by Stina Wirsén. This Swedish book, along with its new introduction and ending, has also been translated into English.

Different Versions of the Book

• Astrid Lindgren (2014): ποτέ βία! (Pote via!, Modern Greek).
• Astrid Lindgren (2015): 暴力は絶対だめ! (Boryoku wa zettai dame) (Japanese).
• Astrid Lindgren (2017): Niemals Gewalt! (German). Friedrich Oetinger Verlag.
• Astrid Lindgren (2018): Aldrig våld! (Swedish). Astrid Lindgren Text.
• Astrid Lindgren (2018): Never violence! (English). Astrid Lindgren Text.
• Astrid Lindgren (2019): Mai violenza! (Italian). Salani.
• Astrid Lindgren (2019): Net nasiliju! (Russian). Belaja vorona.

The Short Film: Never Violence

Never Violence (original title: Niemals Gewalt) is a short film made by David Aufdembrinke. It is based on the story that Astrid Lindgren told in her famous speech.

What Happens in the Film

A boy watches his neighbor baking a delicious strawberry cake. He secretly takes the cake and eats it. But the neighbor discovers him. She takes him to his mother and tells her to punish her son. The mother tells her son to go outside and find a stick.

As it gets dark, the boy still hasn't returned. The mother runs into the forest, calling for him. But her son doesn't answer. She then runs to the phone to call for help. Just as she is about to make the call, her son comes back. He tells her he is sorry. The mother explains that the most important thing is that he is safe and back home.

The boy tells his mother he couldn't find a stick. Instead, he gives her a big stone. He adds that she could hurt him with that too. The mother looks at him with shock and sadness. She puts the stone aside and hugs her boy tightly. The stone is then placed on the windowsill, and the words "Never Violence" appear on the screen.

How the Film Was Made

The film crew worked for more than a year to plan the movie. The film was then made with a small budget of 3,000 euros. It was filmed in just three days in Steinberg-Haff and Emkendorf in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.

At first, the filmmakers thought about setting the story in modern times. The mother might have been a single parent facing tough times. But they decided against this. They worried that viewers might then think violence was only a problem for other people. Instead, the film crew wanted to show violence from a child's point of view.

Director David Aufdembrinke explained that the film shows a child who does everything to get his mother's love. He also said it was important to show that children who experience violence might see it as normal. They might then pass it on to others. If violence feels strange and wrong to children, he believes there is hope for a peaceful future.

The film was released on International Children's Day on September 20, 2009. It was made by the DAGO Kinderlobby (DAGO Children's Lobby) with help from the Deutsche Liga für das Kind (German League for the Child in Family and Society). These two groups work to protect the rights of young people. This was the first film role for the main actor, Justus Herold. In 2010, the film was shown at the Sardinia Film Festival in Italy. The Stiftung Kinderschutz Schweiz (Swiss Foundation for Child Protection) also showed the film on their website during the international No Hitting Day.