--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Here is what needs to be understood in…" description: "\"“Here is what needs to be understood in our bones: the spell of neoliberalism has been broken, crushed under the weight of lived experience and a mount..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aeb/naomi-klein-1072_left-wing_here-is-what-needs-to-be-understood-in-o_2815263.png" --- # Here is what needs to be understood in our bones: the… ![“Here is what needs to be understood in our bones: the spell of neoliberalism has been broken, crushed under the weight of lived experience and a mountain of evidence. What for decades was unsayable is now being said out loud by candidates who win millions of votes: free college tuition, double the…” quote by Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aeb/naomi-klein-1072_left-wing_here-is-what-needs-to-be-understood-in-o_2815263.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aeb/naomi-klein-1072_left-wing_here-is-what-needs-to-be-understood-in-o_2815263.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aeb/naomi-klein-1072_left-wing_here-is-what-needs-to-be-understood-in-o_2815263.png) > ““Here is what needs to be understood in our bones: the spell of neoliberalism has been broken, crushed under the weight of lived experience and a mountain of evidence. What for decades was unsayable is now being said out loud by candidates who win millions of votes: free college tuition, double the minimum wage, 100 percent renewable energy as quickly as technology allows, demilitarize the police, prisons are no place for young people, refugees are welcome here, war makes us all less safe. The left-wing almost-wins of the past two years are not defeats. They are the first tremors of a profound idealogical realignment from which a progressive majority could well emerge”” [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Neoliberalism's grip is weakening as lived experience and evidence fuel progressive demands for education, wages, renewable energy, and social justice. **In simple terms:** People demand big reforms as they see failures of neoliberal policies. Key Takeaway Support policies that address systemic inequities. Themes politics social justice economic reform Mood urgent optimistic Type activist analytical When to use this quote - activism - policy advocacy - community organizing - public education Key Concepts neoliberal critique progressive movements Questions to Reflect On - What concrete steps can individuals take to push progressive policies? - How can collective experience be turned into political power? A Different Perspective Change faces entrenched interests and slow implementation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Left wing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/left-wing/) [Minimum wage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minimum-wage/) [Neoliberalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/neoliberalism/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Renewable energy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/renewable-energy/) [Vote](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vote/) [Young people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-people/) ## Related quotes > [ “the stories that produced \[Trump\] were always contested. There were always other stories, ones that insisted that money is not what’s valuable, and that… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/the-stories-that-produced-trump-were-always-contested-there-were/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [“A society with extreme inequality, unmasked neo-fascist tendencies, ​and an unraveling climate is sick, and neoliberalism, as one of the major drivers of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/a-society-with-extreme-inequality-unmasked-neo-fascist-tendencies-and/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [“The crucial lesson of Brexit and of Trump's victory, is that leaders who are seen as representing the failed neoliberal status quo are no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/the-crucial-lesson-of-brexit-and-of-trump-s-victory-is-that-leaders/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [“Neoliberalism is an extreme form of capitalism that started to become dominant in the 1980s, under Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher, but since the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/neoliberalism-is-an-extreme-form-of-capitalism-that-started-to-become/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [“This, without a doubt, is neoliberalism’s single most damaging legacy: the realization of its bleak vision has isolated us enough from one another that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/this-without-a-doubt-is-neoliberalism-s-single-most-damaging-legacy/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [“The author and intellectual Cornel West has said that 'justice is what love looks like in public.' I often think that neoliberalism is what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/the-author-and-intellectual-cornel-west-has-said-that-justice-is-what/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [“A state of shock is produced when a story is ruptured… Trump is not a rupture at all, but rather the culmination – the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/a-state-of-shock-is-produced-when-a-story-is-ruptured-trump-is-not-a/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [I think the fossil fuel industry is genuinely freaked out by the combination of the price collapse, the divestment movement, and that fact that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/i-think-the-fossil-fuel-industry-is-genuinely-freaked-out-by-the/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [Why would we build as unequal a renewable energy sector as we have built a fossil fuel sector? The nice thing about renewables is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/why-would-we-build-as-unequal-a-renewable-energy-sector-as-we-have/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [Fossil fuels are - they're inherently centralized. 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We have massive forms of inequality developing because there are no longer any concessions. There's a war…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/today-s-neoliberalism-has-a-number-of-byproducts-we-have-massive/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [The very design of neoliberal principles is a direct attack on democracy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-very-design-of-neoliberal-principles-is-a-direct-attack-on/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The main substantive achievement of neoliberalism has been to redistribute rather than to generate wealth and income.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harvey/the-main-substantive-achievement-of-neoliberalism-has-been-to/) [David Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harvey/) ## More by Naomi Klein > [Public infrastructure around the world is facing unprecedented stress, with hurricanes, cyclones, floods and forest fires all increasing in frequency and intensity. It's easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/public-infrastructure-around-the-world-is-facing-unprecedented-stress/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [But we need to be very clear: because of our decades of collective denial, no gradual, incremental options are now available to us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/but-we-need-to-be-very-clear-because-of-our-decades-of-collective/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [As I explored Trump's inextricable relationship with his commercial brand, and its implications for the future of politics, I began to see why so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/as-i-explored-trump-s-inextricable-relationship-with-his-commercial/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [It doesn't have the ability to think rationally this economic model. 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Maybe there's, like, five people living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/we-live-in-a-society-that-is-powered-by-fossil-fuels-but-for-the/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [I can tell you Donald Trump's products may not be made in America, but Donald Trump was made in America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/i-can-tell-you-donald-trump-s-products-may-not-be-made-in-america-but/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [Africa is poor because its investors and its creditors are unspeakably rich.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/africa-is-poor-because-its-investors-and-its-creditors-are/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [“It is a civilizational wake-up call. A powerful message—spoken in the language of fires, floods, droughts, and extinctions—telling us that we need an entirely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/it-is-a-civilizational-wake-up-call-a-powerful-message-spoken-in-the/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [“You have been negotiating all my life.” So said Canadian college student Anjali Appadurai, as she stared down the assembled government negotiators at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/you-have-been-negotiating-all-my-life-so-said-canadian-college/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [There's a property in Panama where Trump has collected somewhere around $30 million just from selling his name to this property - it's somewhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/there-s-a-property-in-panama-where-trump-has-collected-somewhere/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [When I went to Australia, I had this feeling, like, 'Wow, this is really a different country.' I think that feeling of genuine foreignness,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/when-i-went-to-australia-i-had-this-feeling-like-wow-this-is-really-a/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [I think there has been this really bad habit of environmentalists being insufferably smug, where they are sort of saying, 'This is the issue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/i-think-there-has-been-this-really-bad-habit-of-environmentalists/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) > [GLHR... has used Greenpeace-style media antics to draw more public attention to the plight of sweatshop workers than the multimillion - dollar international trade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/glhr-has-used-greenpeace-style-media-antics-to-draw-more-public/) [Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) [Explore all 291 Naomi Klein quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/) ## More Left wing quotes > ['Vanity Fair' is a left-wing rag.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ailes/vanity-fair-is-a-left-wing-rag/) [Roger Ailes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ailes/) > [There is a simple rule here, a rule of legislation, a rule of business, a rule of life: beyond a certain point, complexity is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/there-is-a-simple-rule-here-a-rule-of-legislation-a-rule-of-business/) [P. 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At Dortmund, it was the same:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ousmane-dembele/at-rennes-i-played-more-down-the-left-wing-but-also-down-the-right/) [Ousmane Dembele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ousmane-dembele/) > [I alienated myself from the academic world almost entirely because it's a left-wing world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelby-steele/i-alienated-myself-from-the-academic-world-almost-entirely-because-it/) [Shelby Steele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelby-steele/) > [I think I represent a more left-wing view of what jazz is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-metheny/i-think-i-represent-a-more-left-wing-view-of-what-jazz-is/) [Pat Metheny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-metheny/) > [Sometimes people with strong ideology, whether left-wing or right-wing, refuse to do something simply because they believe it is wrong, when doing it actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ha-joon-chang/sometimes-people-with-strong-ideology-whether-left-wing-or-right-wing/) [Ha-Joon Chang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ha-joon-chang/) > [As a broadly left-wing, environmentally aware urban believer in anthropogenic global warming, I am all for a total ban on motor vehicles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-coren/as-a-broadly-left-wing-environmentally-aware-urban-believer-in/) [Giles Coren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-coren/) > [Don't you see the rest of the country looks upon New York like we're left-wing, communist, Jewish, homosexual pornographers? 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