--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The liberation movement which I led in…" description: "\"The liberation movement which I led in Algeria, the organization that I created to fight the French army, was at first a small movement of nothing at a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f66/ahmed-ben-bella-20385_algeria_the-liberation-movement-which-i-led-in-a_1312464.jpg" --- # The liberation movement which I led in Algeria, the… ![“The liberation movement which I led in Algeria, the organization that I created to fight the French army, was at first a small movement of nothing at all. We were but some tens of people throughout Algeria, a territory that is five times the size of France” quote by Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f66/ahmed-ben-bella-20385_algeria_the-liberation-movement-which-i-led-in-a_1312464.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f66/ahmed-ben-bella-20385_algeria_the-liberation-movement-which-i-led-in-a_1312464.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f66/ahmed-ben-bella-20385_algeria_the-liberation-movement-which-i-led-in-a_1312464.jpg) > “The liberation movement which I led in Algeria, the organization that I created to fight the French army, was at first a small movement of nothing at all. We were but some tens of people throughout Algeria, a territory that is five times the size of France” [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The Algerian resistance began as a tiny, scattered group, yet grew to challenge a powerful colonial army. **In simple terms:** Small movements can become powerful. Key Takeaway Start small, think big. Themes resistance colonialism leadership Mood inspirational determined Type historical political When to use this quote - community organizing - political activism - colonial struggle Key Concepts nationalism grassroots organization Questions to Reflect On - How can a tiny group sustain momentum? - What risks do early activists face? A Different Perspective Growth can be limited by resources and repression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Algeria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/algeria/) [Algeria Organization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/algeria-organization-4347214/) [Algeria Territory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/algeria-territory-4347215/) [Army](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/army/) [Fighting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fighting/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Five](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/five/) [France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/france/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Led Algeria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/led-algeria-4347213/) [Liberation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberation/) [Liberation Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/liberation-movement-775757/) [Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movement/) [Organization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/organization/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Size](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/size/) [Territory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/territory/) ## Related quotes > [The French colonisation of Algeria lasted a long time: 132 years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/the-french-colonisation-of-algeria-lasted-a-long-time-132-years/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [Algeria is not breaking up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/algeria-is-not-breaking-up/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [Yes, I am Algerian of Moroccan origin through my parents, but all my life is Algeria. I was born there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/yes-i-am-algerian-of-moroccan-origin-through-my-parents-but-all-my/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [Algeria was therefore only the beginning of something that was in development: this is why I say that it's the global capitalist system that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/algeria-was-therefore-only-the-beginning-of-something-that-was-in/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I am the son of poor peasants who came at a very young age to live in Algeria. I only recently saw the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-am-the-son-of-poor-peasants-who-came-at-a-very-young-age-to-live-in/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I can say now: all the combatants who participated in the fight for freedom in South America came to Algeria; it's from there that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-can-say-now-all-the-combatants-who-participated-in-the-fight-for/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [The animal liberation movement is saying that where animals and humans have similar interests - we might take the interest in avoiding physical pain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/the-animal-liberation-movement-is-saying-that-where-animals-and/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [“If we have learned anything from the liberation movements, we should have learned how difficult it is to be aware of the ways in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/if-we-have-learned-anything-from-the-liberation-movements-we-should/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [None of us, no matter how perfect, can claim that the building of a new society and the marshalling of a former liberation movement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-zuma/none-of-us-no-matter-how-perfect-can-claim-that-the-building-of-a-new/) [Jacob Zuma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-zuma/) > [Where else but in America could the women's liberation movement take off their bras, then go on TV to complain about their lack of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hope/where-else-but-in-america-could-the-women-s-liberation-movement-take/) [Bob Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hope/) > [When a family is involved in a human rights movement, as in the Mexican- American family, there is little room for a woman's liberation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enriqueta-longauex-vasquez/when-a-family-is-involved-in-a-human-rights-movement-as-in-the/) [Enriqueta Longauex-Vasquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enriqueta-longauex-vasquez/) > [When the women's liberation movement began, when people began protesting against the Vietnam War, civil rights movement, at the beginning of those movements, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moore/when-the-women-s-liberation-movement-began-when-people-began/) [Michael Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moore/) > [“The women's liberation movement of today in America, in its most oceanic sense, is a wish by women to be liked for something other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut-jr/the-women-s-liberation-movement-of-today-in-america-in-its-most/) [Kurt Vonnegut Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut-jr/) > [A liberation movement that is nonviolent sets the oppressor free as well as the oppressed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-deming/a-liberation-movement-that-is-nonviolent-sets-the-oppressor-free-as/) [Barbara Deming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-deming/) > [The war against the Black Liberation movement by the FBI/U.S. government was most influential for me in seeing the necessity for armed self-defense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-rosenberg/the-war-against-the-black-liberation-movement-by-the-fbi-u-s/) [Susan Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-rosenberg/) ## More by Ahmed Ben Bella > [It's with them that we have constituted a liberation front and brought our logistic support to armies to help their countries come out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/it-s-with-them-that-we-have-constituted-a-liberation-front-and/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I think that they participated in something that was not very proper and was very pitiful, not only for the Algerian people, but also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-think-that-they-participated-in-something-that-was-not-very-proper/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I spent 24 and a half years in prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-spent-24-and-a-half-years-in-prison/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I'm optimistic because I'm pragmatic: Neither of the two sides, the military government nor the Islamic front, is capable of winning. If they continue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-m-optimistic-because-i-m-pragmatic-neither-of-the-two-sides-the/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I can say now: all the combatants who participated in the fight for freedom in South America came to Algeria; it's from there that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-can-say-now-all-the-combatants-who-participated-in-the-fight-for/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I am the son of poor peasants who came at a very young age to live in Algeria. I only recently saw the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-am-the-son-of-poor-peasants-who-came-at-a-very-young-age-to-live-in/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I am not a Marxist, but I place myself resolutely at the left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-am-not-a-marxist-but-i-place-myself-resolutely-at-the-left/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [Colonialism is an idea born in the West that drives Western countries - like France, Italy, Belgium, Great Britain - to occupy countries outside…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/colonialism-is-an-idea-born-in-the-west-that-drives-western-countries/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I am a Muslim Arab, in my actions oriented very to the left, in my convictions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-am-a-muslim-arab-in-my-actions-oriented-very-to-the-left-in-my/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [Algeria was therefore only the beginning of something that was in development: this is why I say that it's the global capitalist system that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/algeria-was-therefore-only-the-beginning-of-something-that-was-in/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [Yes, my life is a life of combat; I can say that this has never stopped for a single instant. It is a combat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/yes-my-life-is-a-life-of-combat-i-can-say-that-this-has-never-stopped/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [Yes, I am Algerian of Moroccan origin through my parents, but all my life is Algeria. I was born there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/yes-i-am-algerian-of-moroccan-origin-through-my-parents-but-all-my/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [In the past, we spoke of poverty, misery only in the south. Now there is a lot of misery, a lot of bad that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/in-the-past-we-spoke-of-poverty-misery-only-in-the-south-now-there-is/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [Colonialism is known in its primitive form, that is to say, by the permanent settling of repressive foreign powers, with an army, services, policies.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/colonialism-is-known-in-its-primitive-form-that-is-to-say-by-the/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [With my government, we engaged in bringing our help to fights for national freedom. At that precise moment, several countries were still colonised or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/with-my-government-we-engaged-in-bringing-our-help-to-fights-for/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) [Explore all 31 Ahmed Ben Bella quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) ## More Algeria quotes > [Anyone who follows the Middle East and Islamic world in general can't deny it is often a very violent place, that a band of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/anyone-who-follows-the-middle-east-and-islamic-world-in-general-can-t/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) > [Algeria is what allowed me to accept myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-bourdieu/algeria-is-what-allowed-me-to-accept-myself/) [Pierre Bourdieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-bourdieu/) > [I have seen children shot in El Salvador, Algeria, Guatemala, Sarajevo, but I have never before watched soldiers entice children like mice into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hedges/i-have-seen-children-shot-in-el-salvador-algeria-guatemala-sarajevo/) [Chris Hedges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hedges/) > [Women in the Arab world have a rich history in their active participation in political change from the Algeria revolution against the French occupation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zainab-salbi/women-in-the-arab-world-have-a-rich-history-in-their-active/) [Zainab Salbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zainab-salbi/) > [In a general way, if one cannot attribute to the Jew the whole responsibility of the situation, economic, political, and social, by which Algeria…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-hagel/in-a-general-way-if-one-cannot-attribute-to-the-jew-the-whole/) [Chuck Hagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-hagel/) > [I can say now: all the combatants who participated in the fight for freedom in South America came to Algeria; it's from there that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-can-say-now-all-the-combatants-who-participated-in-the-fight-for/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I am the son of poor peasants who came at a very young age to live in Algeria. I only recently saw the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-am-the-son-of-poor-peasants-who-came-at-a-very-young-age-to-live-in/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [“You think about bathing in the sea – thick as velvet, supple and smooth as a wild animal. You think about swimming naked, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/you-think-about-bathing-in-the-sea-thick-as-velvet-supple-and-smooth/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Algeria, the second-largest country in Africa, has been dogged by terrorism. But while dangers remain, they are far outweighed by the hospitality of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-drinkwater/algeria-the-second-largest-country-in-africa-has-been-dogged-by/) [Carol Drinkwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-drinkwater/) > [“If Algeria introduced a resolution that the earth was flat and that Israel had flattened it, it would pass by a vote of 164…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abba-eban/if-algeria-introduced-a-resolution-that-the-earth-was-flat-and-that/) [Abba Eban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abba-eban/) > [What is the Obama Doctrine? It seems to be one of disengagement, to try to ignore the hot, religious, dry, poor countries from Algeria…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/what-is-the-obama-doctrine-it-seems-to-be-one-of-disengagement-to-try/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) > [ \[Albert\] Camus' was born in Algeria of French nationality, and was assimilated into the French colony, although the French colonists rejected him absolutely because… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/albert-camus-was-born-in-algeria-of-french-nationality-and-was/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) > [In the 1990s, Islamists in Algeria won elections like the Brotherhood did in Egypt. The Algerian military refused to allow the Islamists to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/in-the-1990s-islamists-in-algeria-won-elections-like-the-brotherhood/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) > [In Algeria, I had begun to get into literature and philosophy. I dreamed of writing-and already models were instructing the dream, a certain language…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-derrida/in-algeria-i-had-begun-to-get-into-literature-and-philosophy-i/) [Jacques Derrida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-derrida/) > [ \[Albert Camus\] really did know Algeria. He was an exile from his country, but still living in its language. Solitaire et solidaire. It's not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/albert-camus-really-did-know-algeria-he-was-an-exile-from-his-country/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) [Browse all 45 Algeria quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/algeria/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The liberation movement which I led in Algeria, the organization that I created to fight the French army, was at first a small movement of nothing at all. 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