I’m not going to ask for anything unless the workers want it. If they want it, they’ll ask for it.
CESAR CHAVEZThere are many reasons for why a man does what he does. To be himself he must be able to give it all. If a leader cannot give it all he cannot expect his people to give anything.
More Cesar Chavez Quotes
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Those who are willing to sacrifice and be of service have very little difficulty with people. They know what they are all about. People can’t help but want to be near them. They help them; they work with them. That’s what love is all about. It starts with your heart and radiates out.
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Nonviolence is really tough. You don’t practice nonviolence at conferences; you practice it on picket-lines.
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Do not romanticize the poor. We are all people, human beings subject to the same temptations and faults as all others. Our poverty damages our dignity.
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Being of service is not enough. You must become a servant of the people. When you do, you can demand their commitment in return.
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Our struggle is not easy. Those who oppose our cause are rich and powerful and they have many allies in high places. We are poor. Our allies are few. But we have something the rich do not own. We have our bodies and spirits and the justice of our cause as our weapons.
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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!
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In 1968, I became a vegetarian after realizing that animals feel afraid, cold, hungry, and unhappy like we do.
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If you’re not frightened that you might fail, you’ll never do the job. If you’re frightened, you’ll work like crazy.
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We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community. Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and for our own.
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I am an organizer, not a union leader. A good organizer has to work hard and long. There are no shortcuts. You just keep talking to people, working with them, sharing, exchanging and they come along.
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Self dedication is a spiritual experience.
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Dr. King challenged us to work for a greater humanity. I only hope that we are worthy of his challenge.
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Never, never is it possible to reach someone if you become angry or bitter only love and gentleness can do it. Maybe not this time but maybe the next or the hundredth time.
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What I do shows people what kind of person I am.
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You know, if people are not pacifists, it’s not their fault. It’s because society puts them in that spot. You’ve got to change it. You don’t just change a man – you’ve got to change his environment as you do it.
CESAR CHAVEZ