Politics hates a vacuum. If it isn't filled with hope, someone will fill it with fear.
Naomi KleinRead
Hope has never trickled down, it has always sprung up.
Interpretation
Hope originates from grassroots movements rather than from those in power.
Naomi Klein's quote emphasizes that true hope and change are not granted by those in authority, but rather arise from the collective efforts and resilience of individuals at the grassroots level. It suggests that meaningful transformation comes from the bottom up, driven by the aspirations and actions of ordinary people.
In practice
In a speech about community activism.
Politics hates a vacuum. If it isn't filled with hope, someone will fill it with fear.
Because it is such a huge crisis, because it puts us on a firm science-based deadline, it's a once-in-a-century opportunity to build a better society and address raging inequality, create huge numbers of jobs, rebuild our public infrastructure. But, we can't do it unless we break every single rule in the free-market playbook. Which is why the worst people in the world all deny climate change.
Terrorism doesn't just blow up buildings; it blasts every other issue off the political map. The spectre of terrorism - real and exaggerated - has become a shield of impunity, protecting governments around the world from scrutiny for their human rights abuses.
Everybody that's trying to get anything progressive done in this country knows that the biggest barrier is getting money out of politics.
I think I would say that there is absolutely no way to reconcile an austerity agenda with climate action. Our political class needs to understand that the fight against austerity and the fight for climate action are the same fight.
I think the fossil fuel industry is genuinely freaked out by the combination of the price collapse, the divestment movement, and that fact that renewable energy is getting so cheap so fast.
I hope that as the Senate and American people learn more about me, they will see that I am an ordinary person who has been blessed with extraordinary opportunities and experiences.
Give light, and people will find the way...
Even if I don't finish, we need others to continue. It's got to keep going without me.
How did the rose ever open its heart and give to this world all of its beauty? It felt the encouragement of Light against its being; otherwise we all remain too frightened.
Recreate the world in your own image and make it better for your having been here.
People need to feel like their heroes are human, not on the mat but in the world. The more people can see that, the more they can understand that they're capable of doing great things as well.
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