Non-violent coercion, Satyagraha, and non-violent direct action, on the
other hand, are definitely positive in their approach. Each seeks to
effectuate a specified change in the policy of the person or group
responsible for a situation which those who organize the non-violent
action believe to be undesirable. However, even in such action the
negative quality may appear. Satyagraha, for instance, insofar as it is
a movement of opposition or "resistance" to British rule in India is
negative, despite its positive objectives of establishing a certain type
of government and economic system in that country.

The employment of active goodwill is another approach to the problem of
bringing about desired social change. Its proponents seek to accomplish
a positive alteration in the attitude and policy of the group or person
responsible for some undesirable situation; but they refuse to use
coercion--even non-violent coercion. Rather they endeavor to convince
their opponent that it would be desirable to change his policy because
the change would be in his own best interest, or would actually maintain
his own real standard of values.

Many of those who would reject all coercion of an opponent practice such
positive goodwill towards him, not because they are convinced that their
action will accomplish the social purposes which they would like to
achieve, but rather because they place such an attitude toward their
fellowmen as their highest value. They insist that they would act in the
same way regardless of the consequences of their action, either to the
person towards whom they practice goodwill or to themselves. They act on
the basis of principle rather than on the basis of expediency. In this
regard they are like many of the practitioners of other methods of
non-violence; but unlike them they place their emphasis on the positive
action of goodwill which they _will_ use, rather than upon a catalogue