--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There is civil disobedience against the…" description: "\"There is civil disobedience against the military machine, protest against police brutality directed especially at people of color.\" — Howard Zinn" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/593/howard-zinn-576_brutality_there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the_924625.jpg" --- # There is civil disobedience against the military machine… ![“There is civil disobedience against the military machine, protest against police brutality directed especially at people of color.” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/593/howard-zinn-576_brutality_there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the_924625.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/593/howard-zinn-576_brutality_there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the_924625.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/593/howard-zinn-576_brutality_there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the_924625.jpg) > “There is civil disobedience against the military machine, protest against police brutality directed especially at people of color.” [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. Civil disobedience challenges oppressive systems like militarism and police brutality, especially protecting marginalized communities. **In simple terms:** Standing against unjust forces protects vulnerable groups. Key Takeaway Support nonviolent resistance for justice. Themes justice activism civil rights Mood determined urgent Type activist political When to use this quote - protest planning - community organizing - policy advocacy - education curricula Key Concepts political theory social movements Questions to Reflect On - What nonviolent actions can you take locally? - How do you sustain morale in prolonged struggle? A Different Perspective Nonviolent tactics may face severe repression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brutality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brutality/) [Civil disobedience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-disobedience/) [Color](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/color/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Disobedience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disobedience/) [Machine Protest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machine-protest-1457899/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Military](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/military/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/police/) [Police brutality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/police-brutality/) [Protest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protest/) [Protest Police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protest-police-1457898/) ## Related quotes > [“But there is also (though much of this is kept from us, to keep us intimidated and without hope) the bubbling of change under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/but-there-is-also-though-much-of-this-is-kept-from-us-to-keep-us/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Civil disobedience is not our problem. Our problem is civil obedience. Our problem is that people all over the world have obeyed the dictates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/civil-disobedience-is-not-our-problem-our-problem-is-civil-obedience-3/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Protest beyond the law is not a departure from democracy; it is absolutely essential to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/protest-beyond-the-law-is-not-a-departure-from-democracy-it-is-2/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [The problem in this world is not civil disobedience...th e problem in this world is civil obedience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-problem-in-this-world-is-not-civil-disobedience-th-e-problem-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“Civil disobedience, as I put it to the audience, was not the problem, despite the warnings of some that it threatened social stability, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/civil-disobedience-as-i-put-it-to-the-audience-was-not-the-problem/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“The challenge remains. 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Our problem is that people all over the world have obeyed the dictates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/civil-disobedience-is-not-our-problem-our-problem-is-civil-obedience-2/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Civil disobedience is not something outside the realm of democracy. Democracy requires civil disobedience. Without civil disobedience democracy does not exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/civil-disobedience-is-not-something-outside-the-realm-of-democracy/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Civil disobedience is not our problem. Our problem is civil obedience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/civil-disobedience-is-not-our-problem-our-problem-is-civil-obedience/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [I partner with Mothers Against Police Brutality - was just a phenomenal group of people and helped me learn so much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-carlisle/i-partner-with-mothers-against-police-brutality-was-just-a-phenomenal/) [Rick Carlisle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-carlisle/) > [Freddie Gray was a story I followed closer than others, for whatever reason, in this larger narrative of police brutality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-malkmus/freddie-gray-was-a-story-i-followed-closer-than-others-for-whatever/) [Stephen Malkmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-malkmus/) > [HATE, even if it's making money. is an underground movie, that's how it was made. It's a film about police brutality in the largest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mathieu-kassovitz/hate-even-if-it-s-making-money-is-an-underground-movie-that-s-how-it/) [Mathieu Kassovitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mathieu-kassovitz/) > [Most pastors railing against gay marriage have never cried out on racism, any type of injustice or police brutality. They've never once made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otis-moss-iii/most-pastors-railing-against-gay-marriage-have-never-cried-out-on/) [Otis Moss III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otis-moss-iii/) > [I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-am-not-unmindful-that-some-of-you-have-come-here-out-of-great/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) ## 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. The accumulation of knowledge, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/a-good-education-is-a-synthesis-of-book-learning-and-involvement-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [The mountain of history books under which we all stand leans so heavily in the other direction-so tremblingly respectful of states and statesmen and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/the-mountain-of-history-books-under-which-we-all-stand-leans-so/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Let's face a historical truth: we have never had a "free market", we have always had government intervention in the economy, and indeed that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/let-s-face-a-historical-truth-we-have-never-had-a-free-market-we-have/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [I can UNDERSTAND pessimism, but I don't BELIEVE in it. It's not simply a matter of faith, but of historical EVIDENCE. Not overwhelming evidence,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/i-can-understand-pessimism-but-i-don-t-believe-in-it-it-s-not-simply/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Protest beyond the law is not a departure from democracy; it is absolutely essential to it. It is a corrective to the sluggishness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/protest-beyond-the-law-is-not-a-departure-from-democracy-it-is/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Now I have been studying very closely what happens every day in the courts in Boston, Massachusetts. 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. The New Yorker Cadwallader Colden,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/middle-class-americans-might-be-invited-to-join-a-new-elite-by/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [If those in charge of our society - politicians, corporate executives, and owners of press and television - can dominate our ideas, they will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/if-those-in-charge-of-our-society-politicians-corporate-executives/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [We were not born critical of existing society. There was a moment in our lives (or a month, or a year) when certain facts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-were-not-born-critical-of-existing-society-there-was-a-moment-in/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [Behind the deceptive words designed to entice people into supporting violence -- words like democracy, freedom, self-defense, national security -- there is the reality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/behind-the-deceptive-words-designed-to-entice-people-into-supporting/) [Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/) > [“George Washington had turned down the requests of blacks, seeking freedom, to fight in the Revolutionary army. 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 Brutality quotes > [All women love semi-rape. They love to be taken.It was his sweet brutality against my bruised body that made his act of love so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-fleming/all-women-love-semi-rape-they-love-to-be-taken-it-was-his-sweet/) [Ian Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-fleming/) > [“The hunger for power has made them cruel They shed humanity and shed every rule They bow to the devil, deny what is just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/the-hunger-for-power-has-made-them-cruel-they-shed-humanity-and-shed/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [Hitler recruited around him homosexuals to make up his Stormtroopers, they were his enforcers, they were his thugs. And Hitler discovered that he could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-fischer/hitler-recruited-around-him-homosexuals-to-make-up-his-stormtroopers/) [Bryan Fischer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-fischer/) > [The greatest reward of this constant interrogation, confrontation with the brutality of my country, is that it has freed me from hosts and myths.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/the-greatest-reward-of-this-constant-interrogation-confrontation-with/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [The African tribesman, with his complete contempt for truth and his emphasis on brutality and savagery for others but not for himself, is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-ron-hubbard/the-african-tribesman-with-his-complete-contempt-for-truth-and-his/) [L. Ron Hubbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-ron-hubbard/) > [Never mind a world that can't see past brutality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ric-ocasek/never-mind-a-world-that-can-t-see-past-brutality/) [Ric Ocasek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ric-ocasek/) > [I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-am-not-unmindful-that-some-of-you-have-come-here-out-of-great/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The horse-laugh indicates brutality of character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-kaspar-lavater/the-horse-laugh-indicates-brutality-of-character/) [Johann Kaspar Lavater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-kaspar-lavater/) > [The Negroes of America had taken the President, the press and the pulpit at their word when they spoke in broad terms of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-negroes-of-america-had-taken-the-president-the-press-and-the/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [We need tremendous energy to bring about a psychological change in ourselves as human beings, because we have lived far too long in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/we-need-tremendous-energy-to-bring-about-a-psychological-change-in/) [Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/) > [I see myself capable of arrogance and brutality... That's a fierce thing, to discover within yourself that which you despise the most in others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-stevens/i-see-myself-capable-of-arrogance-and-brutality-that-s-a-fierce-thing/) [George Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-stevens/) > [The very opposite of freedom is cliche, and nothing is less free, more inert with convention and hollow brutality, than a row of four-letter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-steiner/the-very-opposite-of-freedom-is-cliche-and-nothing-is-less-free-more/) [George Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-steiner/) > [I can tell you countless instances of this country's history of brutality, of inequity, of heartlessness. But if I do that without also talking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-moore/i-can-tell-you-countless-instances-of-this-country-s-history-of/) [Wes Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-moore/) > [What draws men and women together is stronger than the brutality and tyranny which drive them apart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/millicent-fawcett/what-draws-men-and-women-together-is-stronger-than-the-brutality-and/) [Millicent Fawcett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/millicent-fawcett/) > [Whether it comes from a despotic sovereign or an elected president, from a murderous general or a beloved leader, I see power as an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oriana-fallaci/whether-it-comes-from-a-despotic-sovereign-or-an-elected-president/) [Oriana Fallaci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oriana-fallaci/) [Browse all 427 Brutality quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brutality/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There is civil disobedience against the military machine, protest against police brutality directed especially at people of color.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Howard Zinn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the-military-machine-protest/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Brutality" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the-military-machine-protest/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/593/howard-zinn-576_brutality_there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the_924625.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/593/howard-zinn-576_brutality_there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the_924625.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/593/howard-zinn-576_brutality_there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the_924625.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There is civil disobedience against the military machine, protest against police brutality directed…” — Howard Zinn", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Howard Zinn", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-zinn/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There is civil disobedience against the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the-military-machine-protest/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/there-is-civil-disobedience-against-the-military-machine-protest/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```