--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We do not take democracy for granted. We…" description: "\"“We do not take democracy for granted. We feel it grow in our working together—many millions of us working toward a common purpose. If it took us sever..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7c/carlos-bulosan-29928_common-purpose_we-do-not-take-democracy-for-granted-we_592600.png" --- # We do not take democracy for granted. We feel it grow in… ![“We do not take democracy for granted. We feel it grow in our working together—many millions of us working toward a common purpose. If it took us several decades of sacrifice to arrive at this faith, it is because it took us that long to know what part of America is ours. Our faith has been shaken…” quote by Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7c/carlos-bulosan-29928_common-purpose_we-do-not-take-democracy-for-granted-we_592600.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7c/carlos-bulosan-29928_common-purpose_we-do-not-take-democracy-for-granted-we_592600.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b7c/carlos-bulosan-29928_common-purpose_we-do-not-take-democracy-for-granted-we_592600.png) > ““We do not take democracy for granted. We feel it grow in our working together—many millions of us working toward a common purpose. If it took us several decades of sacrifice to arrive at this faith, it is because it took us that long to know what part of America is ours. Our faith has been shaken many times, and now it is put to question. Our faith is a living thing, and it can be crippled or chained. It can be killed by denying us enough food or clothing, by blasting away our personalities and keeping us in constant fear. Unless we are properly prepared the powers of darkness will have good reason to catch us unaware and trample our lives.”” [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Democracy thrives on collective effort and vigilance; neglect makes it vulnerable. **In simple terms:** Democracy needs active participation and protection. Key Takeaway Stay engaged and protect democratic values. Themes democracy community resilience Mood determined hopeful Type inspirational political When to use this quote - voting - community organizing - policy advocacy - social movements Key Concepts civic duty collective action Questions to Reflect On - What actions keep democracy alive? - How do you counter fear‑based oppression? A Different Perspective Complacency can erode rights. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Common purpose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-purpose/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) ## Related quotes > [“Just because your faith is shaken doesn’t mean the faith is shaken. The eternal truths of the Kingdom aren’t altered or affected by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-arthur/just-because-your-faith-is-shaken-doesn-t-mean-the-faith-is-shaken/) [Sarah Arthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-arthur/) > [Faith cannot be shaken, it is the result of being shaken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-needleman/faith-cannot-be-shaken-it-is-the-result-of-being-shaken/) [Jacob Needleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-needleman/) > [“You trust God, and no matter what happens, you refuse to let your faith be shaken.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-h-rushford/you-trust-god-and-no-matter-what-happens-you-refuse-to-let-your-faith/) [Patricia H. Rushford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-h-rushford/) > [Placing too much faith in people will sometimes surely cause your faith to be shaken. GOD will have the final say who is supposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/placing-too-much-faith-in-people-will-sometimes-surely-cause-your/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [“We all laughed. Faith shaken by the discovery that the entity believed in actually existed – the paradox of piety.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-all-laughed-faith-shaken-by-the-discovery-that-the-entity-believed/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [This story is not and never was meant to challenge anyone's faith; however, if one's faith can be shaken by stories in a humorous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-moore/this-story-is-not-and-never-was-meant-to-challenge-anyone-s-faith/) [Christopher Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-moore/) > [Through much of the last century, America's faith in freedom and democracy was a rock in a raging sea. Now it is a seed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/through-much-of-the-last-century-america-s-faith-in-freedom-and/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [That is the true genius of America, a faith in the simple dreams of its people, the insistence on small miracles. That we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/that-is-the-true-genius-of-america-a-faith-in-the-simple-dreams-of-2/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [I will become known In America: I have faith in myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demis-roussos/i-will-become-known-in-america-i-have-faith-in-myself/) [Demis Roussos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demis-roussos/) > [There is nothing wrong with America that faith, love of freedom, intelligence, and energy of her citizens cannot cure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/there-is-nothing-wrong-with-america-that-faith-love-of-freedom/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [I think the greatest taboos in America are faith and failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-malone/i-think-the-greatest-taboos-in-america-are-faith-and-failure/) [Michael Malone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-malone/) > [That is the true genius of America-a faith in simple dreams, an insistence on small miracles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/that-is-the-true-genius-of-america-a-faith-in-simple-dreams-an/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [ \[People of faith must\] reassure them \[atheists\] that we share with them the core values of America, that our faith is not inconsistent with… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-lieberman/people-of-faith-must-reassure-them-atheists-that-we-share-with-them/) [Joe Lieberman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-lieberman/) > [There is nothing wrong with America that the faith, love of freedom, intelligence, and energy of her citizens can not cure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-is-nothing-wrong-with-america-that-the-faith-love-of-freedom/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [That is the true genius of America, a faith in the simple dreams of its people, the insistence on small miracles. That we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/that-is-the-true-genius-of-america-a-faith-in-the-simple-dreams-of/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## More by Carlos Bulosan > [“I lived in a big bunkhouse of thirty farm workers with Leroy, who was a stranger to me in many ways because he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/i-lived-in-a-big-bunkhouse-of-thirty-farm-workers-with-leroy-who-was/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [“We ...recognize the forces which have been trying to falsify American history—the forces which drive away many Americans to a corner of compromise with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/we-recognize-the-forces-which-have-been-trying-to-falsify-american/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [I came to know that in many ways it was a crime to be Filipino in California … I feel like a criminal running…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/i-came-to-know-that-in-many-ways-it-was-a-crime-to-be-filipino-in/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [“Why was America so kind and yet so cruel? Was there no way to simplifying things in this continent so that suffering would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/why-was-america-so-kind-and-yet-so-cruel-was-there-no-way-to/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [“You ...see us ...and you think you know us, but our outward guise is more deceptive than our history.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/you-see-us-and-you-think-you-know-us-but-our-outward-guise-is-more/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [“We march on, though sometimes strange moods fill our children. Our march toward security and peace is the march of freedom—the freedom that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/we-march-on-though-sometimes-strange-moods-fill-our-children-our/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [“I remembered all my years in the Philippines, my father fighting for his inherited land, my mother selling boggoong to the impoverished peasants. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/i-remembered-all-my-years-in-the-philippines-my-father-fighting-for/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [“ The human heart is bigger than the world , I said to myself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/the-human-heart-is-bigger-than-the-world-i-said-to-myself/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [Now culture being a social product, I firmly believe that any work of art should have a social function to beautify, to glorify, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/now-culture-being-a-social-product-i-firmly-believe-that-any-work-of/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [Men who had poetry in their soul come silently into the world and live quietly down the years, and yet when they are gone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/men-who-had-poetry-in-their-soul-come-silently-into-the-world-and/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [“We have been marching for the last one hundred and fifty years. We sacrifice our individual liberties, and sometimes we fail and suffer. Sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/we-have-been-marching-for-the-last-one-hundred-and-fifty-years-we/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [The old world is dying, but a new world is being born. It generates inspiration from the chaos that beats upon us all. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/the-old-world-is-dying-but-a-new-world-is-being-born-it-generates/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [“If you want to know what we are, look at the men reading books, searching in the dark pages of history for the lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/if-you-want-to-know-what-we-are-look-at-the-men-reading-books/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [“We jumped into a waiting bus, and two Negro laborers followed us. We did not drop any money in the slot; the Negroes took…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/we-jumped-into-a-waiting-bus-and-two-negro-laborers-followed-us-we/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) > [America is also the nameless foreigner, the homeless refugee, the hungry boy begging for a job and the black body dangling on a tree.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-bulosan/america-is-also-the-nameless-foreigner-the-homeless-refugee-the/) [Carlos Bulosan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) [Explore all 18 Carlos Bulosan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-bulosan/) ## More Common purpose quotes > [My own definition of leadership is this: The capacity and the will to rally men and women to a common purpose and the character…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-law-montgomery/my-own-definition-of-leadership-is-this-the-capacity-and-the-will-to/) [Bernard Law Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-law-montgomery/) > [It is kind of nice to have a common purpose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-wolfowitz/it-is-kind-of-nice-to-have-a-common-purpose/) [Paul Wolfowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-wolfowitz/) > [To me, just to be surrounded by others, even without a common purpose, is great fulfillment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-mckelvey/to-me-just-to-be-surrounded-by-others-even-without-a-common-purpose/) [Miguel McKelvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-mckelvey/) > [No matter who we are or what we look like or what we may believe, it is both possible and, more importantly, it becomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/no-matter-who-we-are-or-what-we-look-like-or-what-we-may-believe-it/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [“With sharing our common purpose we multiply and with keeping to ourselves we divide. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santosh-kalwar/with-sharing-our-common-purpose-we-multiply-and-with-keeping-to/) [Santosh Kalwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santosh-kalwar/) > [People of different faiths, like yours and mine, sometimes wonder where we can meet in common purpose, when there are so many differences in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitt-romney/people-of-different-faiths-like-yours-and-mine-sometimes-wonder-where/) [Mitt Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitt-romney/) > [Leader and followers are both following the invisible leader-the common purpose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-parker-follett/leader-and-followers-are-both-following-the-invisible-leader-the/) [Mary Parker Follett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-parker-follett/) > [“Organisations often appoint leaders for their IQ. Then, years later, sack them for their lack of EQ (Emotional Intelligence). Common Purpose argues that in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-middleton/organisations-often-appoint-leaders-for-their-iq-then-years-later/) Julia Middleton > [We're up against the conventional thinking that says your ability to lead as president comes from longevity in Washington or proximity to the White…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/we-re-up-against-the-conventional-thinking-that-says-your-ability-to/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [My message is more about unity, solving problems and trying to bring the American people together around a notion of common purpose in terms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-delaney/my-message-is-more-about-unity-solving-problems-and-trying-to-bring/) [John Delaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-delaney/) > [The prospective colonization of space responds, not to the particular problems of the American nation, or of any other nation, but to those of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-j-halle/the-prospective-colonization-of-space-responds-not-to-the-particular/) [Louis J. Halle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-j-halle/) > [People working together in a strong community with a shared goal and a common purpose can make the impossible possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-vilsack/people-working-together-in-a-strong-community-with-a-shared-goal-and/) [Tom Vilsack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-vilsack/) > [“Tell me now, fairy as you are - can't you give me a charm, or a philter, or something of that sort, to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/tell-me-now-fairy-as-you-are-can-t-you-give-me-a-charm-or-a-philter/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [“A lot of what we know to be history isn’t…it serves a purpose. Events are exaggerated, heroes fabricated, goals are rewritten to appear more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-penny/a-lot-of-what-we-know-to-be-history-isn-t-it-serves-a-purpose-events/) [Louise Penny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-penny/) > [I consider discipline indispensable, but it must be inner discipline, motivated by a common purpose and a strong feeling of comradeship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buenaventura-durruti/i-consider-discipline-indispensable-but-it-must-be-inner-discipline/) [Buenaventura Durruti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buenaventura-durruti/) [Browse all 87 Common purpose quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-purpose/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We do not take democracy for granted. We feel it grow in our working together—many millions of us working toward a common purpose. 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