--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Majorities can be wrong, majorities can…" description: "\"Majorities can be wrong, majorities can overrule rights of minorities. If majorities ruled, we could still have slavery. 80% of the population once ens..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e60/howard-zinn-576_accounts_majorities-can-be-wrong-majorities-can-o_898666.jpg" --- # Majorities can be wrong, majorities can overrule rights of… ![“Majorities can be wrong, majorities can overrule rights of minorities. If majorities ruled, we could still have slavery. 80% of the population once enslaved 20% of the population. While run by majority rule that is ok. That is very flawed notion of what democracy is. Democracy has to take into…” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e60/howard-zinn-576_accounts_majorities-can-be-wrong-majorities-can-o_898666.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e60/howard-zinn-576_accounts_majorities-can-be-wrong-majorities-can-o_898666.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e60/howard-zinn-576_accounts_majorities-can-be-wrong-majorities-can-o_898666.jpg) > “Majorities can be wrong, majorities can overrule rights of minorities. If majorities ruled, we could still have slavery. 80% of the population once enslaved 20% of the population. While run by majority rule that is ok. That is very flawed notion of what democracy is. Democracy has to take into account several things - proportionate requirements of people, not just needs of the majority, but also needs of the minority. Majority, especially in societies where the media manipulates public opinion, can be totally wrong and evil. People have to act according to conscience and not by majority vote.” [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. Majority rule can oppress minorities; true democracy must protect minority rights and balance power. **In simple terms:** Democracy must protect minorities, not just follow the majority. Key Takeaway Ensure checks and balances protect minorities. Themes democracy minority rights majority rule political ethics Mood critical reflective Type philosophical political When to use this quote - legislative voting - media influence - public protest - judicial review Key Concepts social contract pluralism civil liberties Questions to Reflect On - How can societies safeguard minority rights? - What mechanisms prevent majority tyranny? A Different Perspective Majorities can be misled by media, leading to unjust outcomes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conscience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscience/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Evil people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil-people/) [Majority rule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/majority-rule/) [Majority vote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/majority-vote/) [Media](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/media/) [Minorities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minorities/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Public opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-opinion/) [Rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rights/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Slavery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slavery/) [Vote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vote/) ## Related quotes > [You can't have five wolves and one sheep voting on what to have for dinner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-flynt/you-can-t-have-five-wolves-and-one-sheep-voting-on-what-to-have-for/) [Larry Flynt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-flynt/) > [The fact disclosed by a survey of the past that majorities have been wrong must not blind us to the complementary fact that majorities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/the-fact-disclosed-by-a-survey-of-the-past-that-majorities-have-been/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [I believe in helping our fellow man in need. I believe that reaching into your own pockets to help someone in need is praiseworthy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-e-williams/i-believe-in-helping-our-fellow-man-in-need-i-believe-that-reaching/) [Walter E. Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-e-williams/) > [The politics of envy is the politics of this commandment: "Thou shalt not steal, except by majority vote." It is the politics of two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-north/the-politics-of-envy-is-the-politics-of-this-commandment-thou-shalt/) [Gary North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-north/) > [I have always been a fan of reality by majority vote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-have-always-been-a-fan-of-reality-by-majority-vote/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Moral principles do not depend on a majority vote. Wrong is wrong, even if everybody is wrong. Right is right, even if nobody is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/moral-principles-do-not-depend-on-a-majority-vote-wrong-is-wrong-even/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [Democracy is about voting and it's about a majority vote. And it's time that we started exercising the Democratic process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-stabenow/democracy-is-about-voting-and-it-s-about-a-majority-vote-and-it-s/) [Debbie Stabenow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-stabenow/) > [Thou shalt not steal, except by majority vote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-north/thou-shalt-not-steal-except-by-majority-vote/) [Gary North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-north/) > [When a legislature decides to steal some of our rights and plans to use police force to accomplish it, what's the real difference between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-richardson/when-a-legislature-decides-to-steal-some-of-our-rights-and-plans-to/) H. L. Richardson > [Don't make decisions by majority vote. The majority is almost always wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-rogers/don-t-make-decisions-by-majority-vote-the-majority-is-almost-always/) [Adrian Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-rogers/) > [“Scientific questions cannot be decided by majority vote in any case.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/scientific-questions-cannot-be-decided-by-majority-vote-in-any-case/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [Truth is not determined by a majority vote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-benedict-xvi/truth-is-not-determined-by-a-majority-vote/) [Pope Benedict XVI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-benedict-xvi/) > [Truth is not arrived at by majority vote.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-atkins/truth-is-not-arrived-at-by-majority-vote/) [Peter Atkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-atkins/) > [A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. 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