Bring your adversary closer

All disagreement is a kind of violence

Here's a law of kinetics: The force of persuasion required to influence another human being to your point of view is directly proportional to distance between you, whether physical, ideological, or emotional.

In other words, the further you are from your adversary, the larger the weapon you need to win them over. Nations use bombs, knights used swords, lovers use words and glances. And to your brain, they can all be a kind of violence.

Empathy is about reducing this distance, and thus the force required to influence others.

Bring your adversary close enough, and you can avoid violence altogether. Because you will understand them. You might even let them influence you.