In South Africa, I feel I am a stranger, at best an animal.
Oliver TamboRead
It is often suggested that the A.N.C. is controlled by the Communist Party, by Communists. Well, I have been long enough in the A.N.C. to know that that has never been true.
Interpretation
The quote expresses the speaker's belief that the African National Congress (A.N.C.) is not under the control of the Communist Party, despite common suggestions.
Oliver Tambo reflects on the misconception that the African National Congress (A.N.C.) is dominated by Communist ideology. He asserts through his experience that this claim is untrue, emphasizing the autonomy and diverse influences within the party, which played a pivotal role in the struggle against apartheid in South Africa.
In practice
In a political debate to highlight the independence of party structures.
In South Africa, I feel I am a stranger, at best an animal.
The more pressure you bring from without, the less internal pressure is necessary.
The sanctions will not kill us. It's apartheid that's killing us.
How do you deal with a criminal that will not listen to what you have to say and who continues his policy of violence? Some say you continue to talk and let him tire himself out. But nearly 40 years after the institution of apartheid, is there anyone who still believes that verbal persuasion will work?
The U.S. is the last country that should see itself as an ally of the apartheid system.
It was of limited usefulness to head great rallies. The government did not listen, and, soon enough, the tear gas and the muzzles of the guns were turned against the people. The justice of our cries went unrecognized.
I think our democracy has it exactly right: two terms, eight years. It's enough. Because it's important to have one foot in reality when you have access to this kind of power.
Actually, to be an effective person politically in this country, I think you have to be thirty or over, and also you have to be rich, well-placed, you have to be close to power. And I don't think that young people, because they look young, can do much, as I think they are counterproductive.
Democracy is not a spectator sport. It is a difficult, hard, full-contact, participatory endeavor.
It is time we had democratic socialism for working families, not just Wall Street billionaires.
All of us should remember that the federal government is not some mysterious institution comprised of buildings, files and paper. The people are the government. What we create we ought to be able to control.
Our American heritage is threatened as much by our own indifference as it is by the most unscrupulous office or by the most powerful foreign threat. The future of this republic is in the hands of the American voter.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.