Howard Zinn Quotes About Politicians

Quotes about: Politicians

• Memorial Day will be celebrated ... by the usual betrayal of the dead, by the hypocritical patriotism of the politicians and contractors preparing for more wars, more graves to receive more flowers on future Memorial Days. The memory of the dead deserves a different dedication. To peace, to defiance of governments.

  Howard Zinn

  Memorial Day, Memories, Betrayal

  Howard Zinn (2011). “The Zinn Reader: Writings on Disobedience and Democracy”, p.331, Seven Stories Press

• We need to decide that we will not go to war, whatever reason is conjured up by the politicians or the media, because war in our time is always indiscriminate, a war against innocents, a war against children.

  Howard Zinn

  Time, Children, War

  "The Old Way of Thinking". The Progressive, November 2001.

• If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television - can dominate our ideas, they will be secure in their power. They will not need soldiers patrolling the streets. We will control ourselves.

  Howard Zinn

  Tyrants, Ideas, Soldier

  Howard Zinn, Dean Birkenkamp, Wanda Rhudy (2016). “Uncommon Sense: From the Writings of Howard Zinn”, p.17, Routledge

• Very important thing to keep in mind, that when justice comes and when injustices are remedied, they’re not remedied by the initiative of the national government or the politicians. They only respond to the power of social movements.

  Howard Zinn

  Government, Justice, Mind

  Howard Zinn (2012). “Howard Zinn Speaks: Collected Speeches, 1963-2009”, p.293, Haymarket Books

• Where progress has been made, wherever any kind of injustice has been overturned, it’s been because people acted as citizens, and not as politicians. They didn’t just moan. They worked, they acted, they organized, they rioted if necessary to bring their situation to the attention of people in power. And that’s what we have to do today.

  Howard Zinn

  People, Progress, Citizens

  Howard Zinn (2012). “Howard Zinn Speaks: Collected Speeches, 1963-2009”, p.264, Haymarket Books

• When a social movement adopts the compromises of legislators, it has forgotten its role, which is to push and challenge the politicians, not fall in meekly behind them. We who protest...are not politicians. We are citizens. Whatever politicians may do, let them first feel the full force of citizens who speak for what is right, not for what is winnable, in a shamefully timorous Congress.

  Howard Zinn

  Fall, Challenges, Roles

  "Are We Politicians or Citizens?" by Howard Zinn, progressive.org. May 1, 2007.

• I've always resented the smug statements of politicians, media commentators, corporate executives who talked of how, in America, if you worked hard you would become rich. The meaning of that was if you were poor it was because you hadn't worked hard enough. I knew this was a lite, about my father and millions of others, men and women who worked harder than anyone, harder than financiers and politicians, harder than anybody if you accept that when you work at an unpleasant job that makes it very hard work indeed.

  Howard Zinn

  Jobs, Father, Hard Work

  "You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train: A Personal History of Our Times". Book by Howard Zinn, 1994.

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