"Those who, by the essence of their belief, are committed to Direct Action only are — just who? Why, the non-resistants; precisely those who do not believe in violence at all! Now do not make the mistake of inferring that I say direct action means non-resistance; not by any means. Direct action may be the extreme of violence, or it may be as peaceful as the waters of the Brook of Siloa that go softly. What I say is, that the real non-resistants can believe in direct action only, never in political action. For the basis of all political action is coercion; even when the State does good things, it finally rests on a club, a gun, or a prison, for its power to carry them through."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Anarchists from the United StatesAtheists from the United StatesPhilosophers from the United StatesSocial anarchistsSocialist feminists
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
Imported from EN Wikiquote
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Voltairine_de_Cleyre
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Voltairine de Cleyre
Voltairine de Cleyre (17 November 1866 – 20 June 1912) was an American anarchist and feminist writer and orator, who opposed statist policies, marriage, and the domination of religion in human sexual roles and women's opportunities. A proponent of libertarian socialism and the free thought movement, she was initially drawn to individualist anarchism but evolved into accepting mutualism and stateless communism, while formally labelling herself [[w:Anarch
79 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Voltairine de Cleyre →
Related Quotes
"Progress has to do with all mankind, not alone with the calm, the wise, and the patient. There is youth in the world,…"
"Written in red their protest stands, For the Gods of the World to see; On the dooming wall their bodiless hands have …"
"Gods of the World! Their mouths are dumb! Your guns have spoken and they are dust. But the shrouded Living, whose hea…"
"Bear it aloft, O roaring flame! Skyward aloft, where all may see. Slaves of the World! Our cause is the same; One is …"
"The moonlight rolls down like a river, The silence streams out like a sea; And far where the eastern winds quiver, My…"
"And sometimes when I am weary, When the path is thorny and Wild, I'll look back to the Eyes in the twilight, Back to …"
"For the way is not strown with petal soft, It is covered with hearts that weep, And the wounds I tread touch a deeper…"
"But the world moves on, and the piteous Earth Still groans in the monster pain; And the star that leads me points onw…"
"Ah, not to a blaze of light I go, Nor shouts of a triumph train; I go down to kiss the dregs of woe, And drink up the…"
"Years! Years, ye shall mix with me! Ye shall grow a part Of the laughing Sea; Of the moaning heart Of the glittered w…"