Army Quote by Gene Sharp
“So, he reasoned, if you can identify the sources of a government's power - people working in civil service, police and judges, even the army - then you know what a dictatorship depends on for its existence.”
About This Quote
Source Essay: From Dictatorship to Democracy, 1993
Understanding a dictatorship’s power sources—bureaucracy, police, judiciary, military—reveals how it sustains itself.
In simple terms: Dictatorships rely on institutions for power.
Key Takeaway
Target those institutions to weaken authoritarian rule.
Themes
politics
power
resistance
Mood
critical
strategic
Type
political
activist
When to use this quote
- activist training
- policy reform
- public education
- legal challenges
Key Concepts
state apparatus
civil disobedience
Questions to Reflect On
- Which institutional levers are most vulnerable?
- How can citizens safely undermine authoritarian structures?
A Different Perspective
Targeting institutions can be dangerous and may cause instability.
![“I can't imagine that I would be asked that by the president-elect [Donald Trump], or then-president [Barack Obama]. But it's - I'm very clear. I voted for the change that put the Army Field Manual in place as a member of Congress. I understand that law very, very quickly and am also deeply aware…” quote by James Mattis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/761/james-mattis-9515_army_i-can-t-imagine-that-i-would-be-asked-th_3990.jpg)
