On rare occasions one does hear of a miraculous case of a married couple falling in love after marriage, but on close examination it will be found that it is a mere adjustment to the inevitable.
Emma GoldmanRead
If I can't dance, I don't want to be part of your revolution.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of joy and self-expression in social movements.
Emma Goldman's quote expresses a powerful sentiment about the role of joy and personal freedom in the quest for social change. It suggests that any revolutionary movement that does not embrace the essence of individual expression—symbolized here by the act of dancing—is inadequate or undesirable. The quote advocates for a revolution that values individuality and happiness as integral components, rather than just the pursuit of political or social goals.
In practice
This quote could be used in a speech advocating for mental health awareness within social movements.
On rare occasions one does hear of a miraculous case of a married couple falling in love after marriage, but on close examination it will be found that it is a mere adjustment to the inevitable.
No one has yet realized the wealth of sympathy, the kindness and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure.
To the indefinite, uncertain mind of the American radical the most contradictory ideas and methods are possible. The result is a sad chaos in the radical movement, a sort of intellectual hash, which has neither taste nor character.
John Burroughs has stated that experimental study of animals in captivity is absolutely useless. Their character, their habits, their appetites undergo a complete transformation when torn from their soil in field and forest. With human nature caged in a narrow space, whipped daily into submission, how can we speak of its potentialities?
Anarchism is the only philosophy which brings to man the consciousness of himself; which maintains that God, the State, and society are non-existent, that their promises are null and void, since they can be fulfilled only through man's subordination.
If love does not know how to give and take without restrictions, it is not love, but a transaction that never fails to lay stress on a plus and a minus.
We must use words to uplift and include. We can use our words to fight back against oppression and hate. But we must also channel our words into action.
I prided myself on being unflappable even in the most chaotic of circumstances.
My countrymen should have nerves of steel, muscles of iron, and minds like thunderbolt.
The most deadly poison of our time is indifference.
The wheelchair and the prosthesis give me a soapbox to stand on. If it helps me get my message across, I'm glad; then we need to talk about what we need to do for this country.
In the current struggle, there is one positive course of action. There is no alternative, for the alternative would connote a rear march.
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