--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We've never had our injustices rectified…" description: "\"We've never had our injustices rectified from the top, from the president or Congress, or the Supreme Court, no matter what we learned in junior high s..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8a/howard-zinn-576_balance_we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified_2577815.jpg" --- # We've never had our injustices rectified from the top… ![“We've never had our injustices rectified from the top, from the president or Congress, or the Supreme Court, no matter what we learned in junior high school about how we have three branches of government, and we have checks and balances, and what a lovely system. No. The changes, important changes…” quote by Howard Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8a/howard-zinn-576_balance_we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified_2577815.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8a/howard-zinn-576_balance_we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified_2577815.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8a/howard-zinn-576_balance_we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified_2577815.jpg) > “We've never had our injustices rectified from the top, from the president or Congress, or the Supreme Court, no matter what we learned in junior high school about how we have three branches of government, and we have checks and balances, and what a lovely system. No. The changes, important changes that we've had in history, have not come from those three branches of government. They have reacted to social movements.” [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. Significant social reforms arise from grassroots movements, not top‑down government action, despite formal checks and balances. **In simple terms:** Change comes from people, not institutions. Key Takeaway Support and join activist movements for reform. Themes social justice grassroots activism political change institutional limits democracy Mood critical empowering Type historical activist When to use this quote - voting - community organizing - media campaigns - education programs Key Concepts civil disobedience collective action policy influence Questions to Reflect On - What movement inspires you? - How can you amplify marginalized voices? A Different Perspective Government can still block progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Balance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) [Branches of government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/branches-of-government/) [Checks and balances](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/checks-and-balances/) [Congress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/congress/) [Court](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/court/) [Government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/government/) [High school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-school/) [High school junior](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/high-school-junior/) [Injustice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/injustice/) [Injustices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/injustices/) [Junior high](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/junior-high/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movement/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Social](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social/) [Social movements](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-movements/) [Supreme court](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/supreme-court/) [Three branches of government](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three-branches-of-government/) ## Related quotes > [Power is the great evil with which we are contending. We have divided power between three branches of government and erected checks and balances…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-henry/power-is-the-great-evil-with-which-we-are-contending-we-have-divided/) [Patrick Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-henry/) > [We are sworn to uphold the Constitution and law. And it has to be consistent and agreed upon with three branches of government -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-huckabee/we-are-sworn-to-uphold-the-constitution-and-law-and-it-has-to-be/) [Mike Huckabee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-huckabee/) > [The Constitution is government's stop sign. It says, you - the three branches of government - can go so far and no farther.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-bachmann/the-constitution-is-government-s-stop-sign-it-says-you-the-three/) [Michele Bachmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-bachmann/) > [The Three Branches of Government: Money, Television, and Bullshit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/the-three-branches-of-government-money-television-and-bullshit/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [Under our system of three branches of government, the courts ultimately are the checks on the legislative and executive branches when they exceed or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-totenberg/under-our-system-of-three-branches-of-government-the-courts/) [Nina Totenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-totenberg/) > [The Congress is a dysfunctional institution; its broken. One of our three branches of government is broken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-congress-is-a-dysfunctional-institution-its-broken-one-of-our/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [The three branches of government number considerably more than three and are not, in any sense, 'branches' since that would imply that there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/the-three-branches-of-government-number-considerably-more-than-three/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [It matters enormously to a successful democratic society like ours that we have three branches of government, each with some independence and some control…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-day-o-connor/it-matters-enormously-to-a-successful-democratic-society-like-ours/) [Sandra Day O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-day-o-connor/) > [You know, when you get to the New World and you develop your three branches of government and you have a civil society, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/you-know-when-you-get-to-the-new-world-and-you-develop-your-three/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [I'm looking for a Justice who appreciates the awesome responsibility that she will be given, if confirmed. A Justice who understands the gravity of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-klobuchar/i-m-looking-for-a-justice-who-appreciates-the-awesome-responsibility/) [Amy Klobuchar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-klobuchar/) > [When the three branches of government have failed to represent the citizenry and the mass of the media has failed to represent the citizenry,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mamet/when-the-three-branches-of-government-have-failed-to-represent-the/) [David Mamet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mamet/) > [I think the Supreme Court has, as an equal branch of government, the ability to overrule Congress and the president. But I also feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-santorum/i-think-the-supreme-court-has-as-an-equal-branch-of-government-the/) [Rick Santorum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-santorum/) > [The federal judiciary is unlike the other branches of government. And once confirmed, a federal judge serves for life. And there's no court above…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-leahy/the-federal-judiciary-is-unlike-the-other-branches-of-government-and/) [Patrick Leahy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-leahy/) > [Thank God for the founding fathers, who set up three separate branches of government. And the media acting as the Fourth Estate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-carson/thank-god-for-the-founding-fathers-who-set-up-three-separate-branches/) [Andre Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-carson/) > [ \[The purpose of a written constitution is\] to bind up the several branches of government by certain laws, which, when they transgress, their acts… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/the-purpose-of-a-written-constitution-is-to-bind-up-the-several/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) ## 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 Balance quotes > [Balance suggests a perfect equilibrium. There is no such thing. That is a false expectation… There are going to be priorities and dimensions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-morrison/balance-suggests-a-perfect-equilibrium-there-is-no-such-thing-that-is/) [Denise Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-morrison/) > [The bones of my architecture are very much related to the structure, to the physical fact of how a building can stand up; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/the-bones-of-my-architecture-are-very-much-related-to-the-structure/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [she got a reputation for an easy smile and a sharp tongue, and using one to balance the other, she seemed friendly but distant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/she-got-a-reputation-for-an-easy-smile-and-a-sharp-tongue-and-using/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [Life's unfairness is not irrevocable; we can help balance the scales for others, if not always for ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hubert-h-humphrey/life-s-unfairness-is-not-irrevocable-we-can-help-balance-the-scales/) [Hubert H. Humphrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hubert-h-humphrey/) > [“We don't need to strive towards balance, we rather need to work on the obstacles that are preventing the natural flow of balance.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-alebraheem/we-don-t-need-to-strive-towards-balance-we-rather-need-to-work-on-the/) [A.A. Alebraheem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-alebraheem/) > [I think that kind of balance comes with the process of growing together as a band, the Little Dragon. We love to write, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukimi-nagano/i-think-that-kind-of-balance-comes-with-the-process-of-growing/) [Yukimi Nagano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukimi-nagano/) > [Balance is the ability to be happy in the midst of the most chaotic or even boring or transient circumstance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/balance-is-the-ability-to-be-happy-in-the-midst-of-the-most-chaotic/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [At times of recession, running a budget deficit is highly desirable. Once the economy begins to recover, you have to balance the budget. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/at-times-of-recession-running-a-budget-deficit-is-highly-desirable/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [It's my intention to make something stand outside the realm of album art, but it also feels comfortable to me to be in it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dyer-baizley/it-s-my-intention-to-make-something-stand-outside-the-realm-of-album/) [John Dyer Baizley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dyer-baizley/) > [Once you've gotten your money in balance, you know how much you have to spend on things that are just fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/once-you-ve-gotten-your-money-in-balance-you-know-how-much-you-have/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [I never understood how much running changes your life. I'm now obsessed. When not trying to beat my personal best, I'm talking to other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadiq-khan/i-never-understood-how-much-running-changes-your-life-i-m-now/) [Sadiq Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadiq-khan/) > [Whatever needed to be done, I need to know how to do it just as well as my wife. You know, for us to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-isbell/whatever-needed-to-be-done-i-need-to-know-how-to-do-it-just-as-well/) [Jason Isbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-isbell/) > [I don't think my parents would have let me go straight into acting full time when I was 12. I do like to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felicity-jones/i-don-t-think-my-parents-would-have-let-me-go-straight-into-acting/) [Felicity Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felicity-jones/) > [When it comes down to music, I have no balance. I am 100 percent. It is like full throttle. Five hundred miles an hour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yanni/when-it-comes-down-to-music-i-have-no-balance-i-am-100-percent-it-is/) [Yanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yanni/) [Browse all 5,166 Balance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/balance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We've never had our injustices rectified from the top, from the president or Congress, or the Supreme Court, no matter what we learned in junior high school about how we have three branches of government, and we have checks and balances, and what a lovely system. No. The changes, important changes that we've had in history, have not come from those three branches of government. They have reacted to social movements.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Howard Zinn" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified-from-the-top-from-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Balance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified-from-the-top-from-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8a/howard-zinn-576_balance_we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified_2577815.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8a/howard-zinn-576_balance_we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified_2577815.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c8a/howard-zinn-576_balance_we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified_2577815.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We've never had our injustices rectified from the top, from the president or Congress, or the Supreme Court…” — 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": "We've never had our injustices rectified...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified-from-the-top-from-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-zinn/we-ve-never-had-our-injustices-rectified-from-the-top-from-the/#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 } } ] } ```