---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The divestment movement is a start at…"
description: "\"The divestment movement is a start at challenging the excesses of capitalism. It's working to delegitimize fossil fuels and showing that they're just a..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/naomi-klein-1072_capitalism_the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-ch_2521421.jpg"
---

#  The divestment movement is a start at challenging the…

![“The divestment movement is a start at challenging the excesses of capitalism. It's working to delegitimize fossil fuels and showing that they're just as unethical as profits from the tobacco industry.” quote by Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/naomi-klein-1072_capitalism_the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-ch_2521421.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/naomi-klein-1072_capitalism_the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-ch_2521421.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/naomi-klein-1072_capitalism_the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-ch_2521421.jpg)

> “The divestment movement is a start at challenging the excesses of capitalism. It's working to delegitimize fossil fuels and showing that they're just as unethical as profits from the tobacco industry.”

[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.

The movement seeks to expose capitalism’s harmful excesses by targeting fossil fuel legitimacy, equating it with other unethical industries.

**In simple terms:** Activists challenge profit‑driven harms.

Key Takeaway

Question corporate power.

Themes

environmental justice capitalism critique activism

Mood

determined urgent

Type

political activist

When to use this quote

- policy advocacy
- consumer boycotts
- shareholder resolutions
- public awareness campaigns

Key Concepts

Ethics of profit systemic change

Questions to Reflect On

- How can individuals pressure corporations effectively?
- What alternatives to profit‑driven models exist?

A Different Perspective

Change may be slow and face entrenched interests.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Capitalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalism/) [Capitalism Working](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalism-working-1254629/) [Divestment Movement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/divestment-movement-1254628/) [Excesses Capitalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excesses-capitalism-826333/) [Fossil fuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fossil-fuel/) [Fossil fuels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fossil-fuels/) [Profits Tobacco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profits-tobacco-1254630/) [Start](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/start/) [Tobacco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tobacco/) [Tobacco industry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tobacco-industry/)

## Related quotes

> [I've never seen a movement spread as fast as the fossil fuel divestment movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/i-ve-never-seen-a-movement-spread-as-fast-as-the-fossil-fuel/)

[Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/)

> [For now, capitalism is working to produce more money but does not see the people. This problem is getting worse across the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lech-walesa/for-now-capitalism-is-working-to-produce-more-money-but-does-not-see/)

[Lech Walesa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lech-walesa/)

> [Factory workers are not working for capitalism, they are working for a living wage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-crick/factory-workers-are-not-working-for-capitalism-they-are-working-for-a/)

[Bernard Crick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-crick/)

> [Ignorance, as well as disapproval for the natural restraints placed on market excesses that capitalism and sound markets impose, cause our present leaders to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/ignorance-as-well-as-disapproval-for-the-natural-restraints-placed-on/)

[Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/)

> [I think that capitalism has just gone too far. And it is actually not limited to the United States. The excesses of capitalism is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tadao-ando/i-think-that-capitalism-has-just-gone-too-far-and-it-is-actually-not/)

[Tadao Ando](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tadao-ando/)

> [“He blamed psychopaths for the brutal excesses of capitalism itself, that the system at its cruelest was a manifestation of a few people’s anomalous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/he-blamed-psychopaths-for-the-brutal-excesses-of-capitalism-itself/)

[Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/)

> [We are the United States of America. And it's our job to rein in the excesses of capitalism so that it doesn't run amok…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/we-are-the-united-states-of-america-and-it-s-our-job-to-rein-in-the/)

[Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/)

> [While football embarrassingly exposes the excesses of capitalism, the Olympic sports have been used to propagate the neoliberal mantra that success is simply a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-fisher/while-football-embarrassingly-exposes-the-excesses-of-capitalism-the/)

[Mark Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-fisher/)

> [We live in a society that is powered by fossil fuels, but for the meantime, we're in it. 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/)

> [Fossil fuels are - they're inherently centralized. And you need a lot of infrastructure to get them out, and you need a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/fossil-fuels-are-they-re-inherently-centralized-and-you-need-a-lot-of/)

[Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/)

> [“A 2007 Harris poll found that 71 percent of Americans believed that the continued burning of fossil fuels would alter the climate. By 2009…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/a-2007-harris-poll-found-that-71-percent-of-americans-believed-that/)

[Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/)

> [“Drilling without thinking has of course been Republican party policy since May 2008. With gas prices soaring to unprecedented heights, that's when the conservative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/drilling-without-thinking-has-of-course-been-republican-party-policy/)

[Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/)

> [The fossil fuel industry has taken control of, and powered up, architecture and methods originally built by the tobacco industry and others to attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheldon-whitehouse/the-fossil-fuel-industry-has-taken-control-of-and-powered-up/)

[Sheldon Whitehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheldon-whitehouse/)

> [To be clear, I don't know whether the fossil fuel industry and its allies engaged in the same kind of racketeering activity as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheldon-whitehouse/to-be-clear-i-don-t-know-whether-the-fossil-fuel-industry-and-its/)

[Sheldon Whitehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheldon-whitehouse/)

> [They represent tomorrow's cigarette business. . . As this 14-24 age group matures, they will account for a key share of the total cigarette…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-reynolds/they-represent-tomorrow-s-cigarette-business-as-this-14-24-age-group/)

[R. J. Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-reynolds/)

## 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. It thinks like a drug addict: 'Where can I get my next fix?'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/it-doesn-t-have-the-ability-to-think-rationally-this-economic-model/)

[Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/)

> [Fury is an entirely appropriate response to a system that sends young people to kill other young people in a war that never should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/fury-is-an-entirely-appropriate-response-to-a-system-that-sends-young/)

[Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/)

> [Since the 1980s, we've been living in this era, really, of corporate rule, based on this idea that the role of government is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/since-the-1980s-we-ve-been-living-in-this-era-really-of-corporate/)

[Naomi Klein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/)

> [We live in a society that is powered by fossil fuels, but for the meantime, we're in it. 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 Capitalism quotes

> [Don't let's lose sight of what creates wealth. It is open markets, it is capitalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/don-t-let-s-lose-sight-of-what-creates-wealth-it-is-open-markets-it/)

[Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/)

> [Crony capitalism is essentially a condition in which... public officials are giving favours to people in the private sector in payment of political favours.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/crony-capitalism-is-essentially-a-condition-in-which-public-officials/)

[Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/)

> [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/)

[Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/)

> [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/)

[Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/)

> [ Neither Italian fascism nor German national "socialism" have anything in common with such a \[Soviet socialistic\] society, primarily because private ownership of factories, plants,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/neither-italian-fascism-nor-german-national-socialism-have-anything/)

[Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/)

> [Corporations have nothing to do with values, and they know it, and sometimes say it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-kierans/corporations-have-nothing-to-do-with-values-and-they-know-it-and/)

[Eric Kierans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-kierans/)

> [Both fact and logic seem to me to support the view that savings invested in privately owned economic tools of production amount to an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-a-harper/both-fact-and-logic-seem-to-me-to-support-the-view-that-savings/)

[F. A. Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-a-harper/)

> [The free market is ugly and stupid, like going to the mall; the unfree market is just as ugly and just as stupid, except…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-free-market-is-ugly-and-stupid-like-going-to-the-mall-the-unfree/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Capitalism, communism ... it's all garbage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mstislav-rostropovich/capitalism-communism-it-s-all-garbage/)

[Mstislav Rostropovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mstislav-rostropovich/)

> [There are no two countries with the same style of economic mechanism, with the same capitalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatoly-chubais/there-are-no-two-countries-with-the-same-style-of-economic-mechanism/)

[Anatoly Chubais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatoly-chubais/)

> [It is more than a little ironic that "capital accumulation" once a rather tendentious Marxian view of a supposed capitalist obsession, should have become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kuttner/it-is-more-than-a-little-ironic-that-capital-accumulation-once-a/)

[Robert Kuttner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kuttner/)

> [Historically, usury was defined as any interest whatever on an unproductive loan.Our whole banking system I have ever abhorred, I continue to abhor, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/historically-usury-was-defined-as-any-interest-whatever-on-an/)

[John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/)

> [Socialism is humanity's second nature. All politicians do is turn human vice into votes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilana-mercer/socialism-is-humanity-s-second-nature-all-politicians-do-is-turn/)

[Ilana Mercer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilana-mercer/)

> [“Scholars have long debated whether capital markets lead to appropriate levels of saving and investment for future generations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-l-weimer/scholars-have-long-debated-whether-capital-markets-lead-to/)

[David L. Weimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-l-weimer/)

> [“A car is one of the most interesting inventions, but driving is one of the most boring activities.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/a-car-is-one-of-the-most-interesting-inventions-but-driving-is-one-of/)

[Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/)

[Browse all 3,832 Capitalism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalism/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "The divestment movement is a start at challenging the excesses of capitalism. It's working to delegitimize fossil fuels and showing that they're just as unethical as profits from the tobacco industry.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Naomi Klein"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-challenging-the-excesses-of/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Capitalism"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-challenging-the-excesses-of/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/naomi-klein-1072_capitalism_the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-ch_2521421.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/naomi-klein-1072_capitalism_the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-ch_2521421.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dac/naomi-klein-1072_capitalism_the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-ch_2521421.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The divestment movement is a start at challenging the excesses of capitalism. It's working to delegitimize…” — Naomi Klein",
                "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": "Naomi Klein",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-klein/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "The divestment movement is a start...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-challenging-the-excesses-of/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-klein/the-divestment-movement-is-a-start-at-challenging-the-excesses-of/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
