What we do know absolutely is that human lives are worth more than grapes and that innocent-looking grapes on the table may disguise poisonous residues hidden deep inside where washing cannot reach.
Interpretation
This quote highlights the value of human life over material things and warns of hidden dangers.
Cesar Chavez emphasizes the intrinsic value of human life, suggesting that it far surpasses the worth of mere commodities, such as grapes. The metaphor of grapes, which may appear harmless but could contain hidden toxins, serves as a cautionary tale about the devaluation of life in pursuit of material gains and the unseen dangers that lurk beneath the surface of seemingly benign objects or situations.
In practice
In a discussion about consumerism vs. humanitarian values, this quote can be used to emphasize the importance of prioritizing life over profits.
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.
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.
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.
Clearly, mythology is no toy for children. Nor is it a matter of archaic, merely scholarly concern, of no moment to modern men of action. For its symbols (whether in the tangible form of images or in the abstract form of ideas) touch and release the deepest centers of motivation, moving literate and illiterate alike, moving mobs, moving civilizations.
Perhaps the only true dignity of man is his capacity to despise himself.
If you break your finger, that's on you, right? But if you get a chronic illness, if you get a serious illness or life-threatening illness, that's something I think we should all share the cost in because we all face the same unknowns and the same risks.
Neurosis is the result of a conflict between the ego and its id, whereas psychosis is the analogous outcome of a similar disturbance in the relation between the ego and the external world.
Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it.
One of the roles of the press is to make sure that the president, in the voice of the people, is telling the truth.
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