In the final analysis it doesn't really matter what the political system is...We don't need perfect political systems; we need perfect participation.
Interpretation
Participation in a political system is more important than the system itself.
Cesar Chavez emphasizes that the effectiveness of any political system relies more on the active engagement and participation of its citizens than on the system's theoretical perfection. He encourages people to focus on fostering meaningful involvement rather than getting caught up in the intricacies of the political structure.
In practice
Use this quote during a civic engagement workshop to encourage community involvement.
I became a vegetarian after realizing that animals feel afraid, cold, hungry and unhappy like we do. I feel very deeply about vegetarianism and the animal kingdom. It was my dog Boycott who led me to question the right of humans to eat other sentient beings.
I think one of the great, great problems...is confusing people to the point where they become immobile. In fact, the more things people can find out for themselves, the more vigor the organization is going to have.
There is enough love and good will in our movement to give energy to our struggle and still have plenty left over to break down and change the climate of hate and fear around us.
Our union represents a breaking away...represents sharing a power, represent questioning, represents a new force...however long it takes, we are geared for a struggle.
Every time we sit at a table at night or in the morning to enjoy the fruits and grain and vegetables from our good earth, remember that they come from the work of men and women and children who have been exploited for generations.
I am convinced that the truest act of courage, the strongest act of manliness, is to sacrifice ourselves for others in a totally nonviolent struggle for justice. To be a man is to suffer for others. God help us to be men!
A politician's words reveal less about what he thinks about his subject than what he thinks about his audience.
Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.
Where I think historians can help preserve and actually restore democracy is to remind us of how we got it.
In America any boy may become President, and I suppose it's just one of the risks he takes.
The practice of politics in the East may be defined by one word: dissimulation.
Power-worship blurs political judgment because it leads, almost unavoidably, to the belief that present trends will continue. Whoever is winning at the moment will always seem to be invincible.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.