--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think a way to behave is to think not…" description: "\"I think a way to behave is to think not in terms of representative government, not in terms of voting, not in terms of electoral politics, but thinking..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/howard-zinn-576_authority_i-think-a-way-to-behave-is-to-think-not_2322858.jpg" --- # I think a way to behave is to think not in terms of… ![“I think a way to behave is to think not in terms of representative government, not in terms of voting, not in terms of electoral politics, but thinking in terms of organizing social movements, organizing in the work place, organizing in the neighborhood, organizing collectives that can become…” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/howard-zinn-576_authority_i-think-a-way-to-behave-is-to-think-not_2322858.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/howard-zinn-576_authority_i-think-a-way-to-behave-is-to-think-not_2322858.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/051/howard-zinn-576_authority_i-think-a-way-to-behave-is-to-think-not_2322858.jpg) > “I think a way to behave is to think not in terms of representative government, not in terms of voting, not in terms of electoral politics, but thinking in terms of organizing social movements, organizing in the work place, organizing in the neighborhood, organizing collectives that can become strong enough to eventually take over - first to become strong enough to resist what has been done to them by authority, and second, later, to become strong enough to actually take over the institutions.” [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Advocates shifting focus from formal political mechanisms to grassroots organization for real power change **In simple terms:** Power comes from organized community action, not just voting Key Takeaway Build strong local groups to challenge authority Themes activism community power change Mood determined hopeful Type activist political When to use this quote - workplace organizing - neighborhood groups - social movements - institutional reform Key Concepts social movement theory collective action political theory Questions to Reflect On - How can small groups sustain momentum? - What structures support lasting change? A Different Perspective Grassroots movements may lack resources and face repression ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Authority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [Institutions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/institutions/) [Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movement/) [Neighborhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neighborhood/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Representative government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/representative-government/) [Representatives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/representatives/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Social movements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-movements/) [Strong enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strong-enough/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Voting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/voting/) [Work place](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-place/) ## Related quotes > [Relatively few people have the resources needed to resist authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/relatively-few-people-have-the-resources-needed-to-resist-authority/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [People who resist authority, who defend the rights of the individual, who try in a period of increasing totalitarianism and centralization to reclaim these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/people-who-resist-authority-who-defend-the-rights-of-the-individual/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [Ordinary people, simply doing their jobs, and without any particular hostility on their part, can become agents in a terrible destructive process. Moreover, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/ordinary-people-simply-doing-their-jobs-and-without-any-particular-2/) [Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/) > [“no matter how much I resist authority, I am everywhere implicated in this text.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juana-maria-rodriguez/no-matter-how-much-i-resist-authority-i-am-everywhere-implicated-in/) Juana Maria Rodriguez > [Look, I get it. Whether it's school, work, family, we've all got a lot on our minds. 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It's a reasonable assumption, but it's wrong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/i-went-into-politics-thinking-that-if-i-made-arguments-in-good-faith/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [You may not be thinking about politics, but politics is thinking about you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-washington/you-may-not-be-thinking-about-politics-but-politics-is-thinking-about/) [Kerry Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-washington/) > [There is one central characteristic of anarchism on the matter of means, and that central principle is a principle of direct action - of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-one-central-characteristic-of-anarchism-on-the-matter-of/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Leave my image alone... I will behave as I think I should and I will not change anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezer-weizman/leave-my-image-alone-i-will-behave-as-i-think-i-should-and-i-will-not/) [Ezer Weizman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezer-weizman/) > [We are dangerous when we are not conscious of our responsibility for how we behave, think, and feel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-b-rosenberg/we-are-dangerous-when-we-are-not-conscious-of-our-responsibility-for/) [Marshall B. Rosenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-b-rosenberg/) > [Country people do not behave as if they think life is short; they live on the principle that it is long, and savor variations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hoagland/country-people-do-not-behave-as-if-they-think-life-is-short-they-live/) [Edward Hoagland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hoagland/) > [In a nutshell, the fountain of happiness can be found in how you behave, what you think, and what goals you set every day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonja-lyubomirsky/in-a-nutshell-the-fountain-of-happiness-can-be-found-in-how-you/) [Sonja Lyubomirsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonja-lyubomirsky/) > [We look at the world through our likes and dislikes, hopes and fears, opinions and judgments. We want everyone to behave as we think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eknath-easwaran/we-look-at-the-world-through-our-likes-and-dislikes-hopes-and-fears/) [Eknath Easwaran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eknath-easwaran/) ## More by Howard Zinn > [“A black man, Benjamin Banneker, who taught himself mathematics and astronomy, predicted accurately a solar eclipse, and was appointed to plan the new city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-black-man-benjamin-banneker-who-taught-himself-mathematics-and/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [There is no flag large enough to cover the shame of killing innocent people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-no-flag-large-enough-to-cover-the-shame-of-killing-innocent/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“a good education is a synthesis of book learning and involvement in social action, because each enrich the other. 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You would be astounded--maybe you wouldn't, maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/now-i-have-been-studying-very-closely-what-happens-every-day-in-the/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [They were not mentioned in the Declaration of Independence, they were absent in the Constitution and they were invisible in the new political democracy.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/they-were-not-mentioned-in-the-declaration-of-independence-they-were/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Sexual purity was to be the special virtue of a woman. It was assumed that men, as a matter of biological nature, would sin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/sexual-purity-was-to-be-the-special-virtue-of-a-woman-it-was-assumed/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Middle-class Americans might be invited to join a new elite by attacks against the corruption of the established rich. 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So when the British military commander in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/george-washington-had-turned-down-the-requests-of-blacks-seeking/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) [Explore all 461 Howard Zinn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) ## More Authority quotes > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. 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