--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's an old anarchist dream that people…" description: "\"It's an old anarchist dream that people can take care of their own lives.\" — Todd Gitlin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3b/todd-gitlin-16525_anarchism_it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people_2983371.jpg" --- # It's an old anarchist dream that people can take care of… ![“It's an old anarchist dream that people can take care of their own lives.” quote by Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3b/todd-gitlin-16525_anarchism_it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people_2983371.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3b/todd-gitlin-16525_anarchism_it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people_2983371.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3b/todd-gitlin-16525_anarchism_it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people_2983371.jpg) > “It's an old anarchist dream that people can take care of their own lives.” [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Anarchist ideal that individuals can manage their own lives without external control. **In simple terms:** People can care for themselves. Key Takeaway Empower personal responsibility. Themes autonomy self‑reliance community political philosophy Mood hopeful determined Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - family budgeting - community gardening - local cooperatives - DIY projects Key Concepts anarchism individualism social organization Questions to Reflect On - What systems support or hinder self‑care? - How can we balance autonomy with collective responsibility? A Different Perspective May overlook structural inequalities that limit true self‑care. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Anarchism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anarchism/) [Anarchist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anarchist/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) [Dreams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreams/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) ## Related quotes > [Anarchism is a definite intellectual current in the life of our times, whose adherents advocate the abolition of economic monopolies and of all political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-rocker/anarchism-is-a-definite-intellectual-current-in-the-life-of-our-times/) [Rudolf Rocker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-rocker/) > [Anarchism, in my view, is an expression of the idea that the burden of proof is always on those who argue that authority and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/anarchism-in-my-view-is-an-expression-of-the-idea-that-the-burden-of/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“We wanted to produce a newspaper which would put (1) class and (2) violence back at the top of the anarchist agenda. It would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-bone/we-wanted-to-produce-a-newspaper-which-would-put-1-class-and-2/) Ian Bone > [Anarchism is not a romantic fable but the hardheaded realization, based on five thousand years of experience, that we cannot entrust the management of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/anarchism-is-not-a-romantic-fable-but-the-hardheaded-realization/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [“To be an anarchist is to leave the beaten paths on which for hundreds of years generations of sheep have walked without reflection, break…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-merriman/to-be-an-anarchist-is-to-leave-the-beaten-paths-on-which-for-hundreds/) John Merriman > [The education we all receive from the State, at school and after, has so warped our minds that the very notion of freedom ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-kropotkin/the-education-we-all-receive-from-the-state-at-school-and-after-has/) [Peter Kropotkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-kropotkin/) > [ The most important thing \[anarchists\] can do is educate themselves, develop a propaganda machinery in the form of books and periodicals, a literature, engage… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/the-most-important-thing-anarchists-can-do-is-educate-themselves/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [In debates between anarchists and statists, the burden of proof clearly should rest on those who place their trust in the state. Anarchy's mayhem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-higgs/in-debates-between-anarchists-and-statists-the-burden-of-proof/) [Robert Higgs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-higgs/) > [You see something very important is happening. Personality is being eaten out, and with that the idealism that always motivated an anarchist movement -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/you-see-something-very-important-is-happening-personality-is-being/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [“I became an anarchist very early on. Anarchism, in my mind, meant taking democracy seriously and organizing prefiguratively- that is, in a way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrej-gruba-i/i-became-an-anarchist-very-early-on-anarchism-in-my-mind-meant-taking/) [Andrej Grubačić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrej-gruba-i/) > [We must therefore turn to history for enlightenment; here we find that none of the proclaimed anarchist groups correspond to the libertarian position, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-rothbard/we-must-therefore-turn-to-history-for-enlightenment-here-we-find-that/) [Murray Rothbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-rothbard/) > [The Anarchists are simply unterrified Jeffersonian Democrats. They believe that 'the best government is that which governs least,' and that which governs least is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-tucker/the-anarchists-are-simply-unterrified-jeffersonian-democrats-they/) [Benjamin Tucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-tucker/) > [Anarchists are opposed to violence; everyone knows that. The main plank of anarchism is the removal of violence from human relations. It is life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/errico-malatesta/anarchists-are-opposed-to-violence-everyone-knows-that-the-main-plank/) [Errico Malatesta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/errico-malatesta/) > [“An anarchist government somehow creates an impression in the hearts of citizens that no one cares.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/an-anarchist-government-somehow-creates-an-impression-in-the-hearts/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [When I talk about self-management, self-regulation, self-government, the word I emphasize is self, and my concern is with the reconstruction of the self. Marxists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/when-i-talk-about-self-management-self-regulation-self-government-the/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) ## More by Todd Gitlin > [The genius of the economic machine is in its ability to convert these indulgences into profitability. It converts desire into attention, a grip on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/the-genius-of-the-economic-machine-is-in-its-ability-to-convert-these/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [All I will say is that there are particular features of the American constitutional system that renders a third party futile - at best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/all-i-will-say-is-that-there-are-particular-features-of-the-american/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Human inertia makes the everyday environment, the furniture, as it were, appear to be a given.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/human-inertia-makes-the-everyday-environment-the-furniture-as-it-were/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [I first came to think about media and politics in the late 1960s, having observed some distortions up close, but since then I wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/i-first-came-to-think-about-media-and-politics-in-the-late-1960s/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [I don't for the life of me understand how anybody could contemplate the results of the 2000 election in the US and say that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/i-don-t-for-the-life-of-me-understand-how-anybody-could-contemplate/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Right now, we have no possibility of politics because we have a one-party state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/right-now-we-have-no-possibility-of-politics-because-we-have-a-one/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [The mobilisation which Bush has been able to perform since 11 September 2001 has to be fought - at least by Americans - in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/the-mobilisation-which-bush-has-been-able-to-perform-since-11/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Navigation is power of a limited sort - it enables us to manage the immensity of the media torrent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/navigation-is-power-of-a-limited-sort-it-enables-us-to-manage-the/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [My book is focused on the power of the American state, not least because the government of the United States governs so much that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/my-book-is-focused-on-the-power-of-the-american-state-not-least/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Mills insisted that a sociologist's proper subject was the intersection of biography and history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/mills-insisted-that-a-sociologist-s-proper-subject-was-the/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Sure, I've often been misrepresented - anyone frequently quoted has this experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/sure-i-ve-often-been-misrepresented-anyone-frequently-quoted-has-this/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [A century of convulsive change leaves huge demographic gouge marks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/a-century-of-convulsive-change-leaves-huge-demographic-gouge-marks/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [If the Bible is a creation myth, it is an amorphous confusing one](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/if-the-bible-is-a-creation-myth-it-is-an-amorphous-confusing-one/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [So every day I'm mindful as I watch the Bush crowd extend their sway into policies of every imaginable variety, and over almost every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/so-every-day-i-m-mindful-as-i-watch-the-bush-crowd-extend-their-sway/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) > [Some versions of patriotism come close to the tribal, which we all want to surpass, and some don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/some-versions-of-patriotism-come-close-to-the-tribal-which-we-all/) [Todd Gitlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) [Explore all 39 Todd Gitlin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/) ## More Anarchism quotes > [I know one thing: that you can do a lot of things but if you don't educate people into conscious anarchism it gets frittered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-bookchin/i-know-one-thing-that-you-can-do-a-lot-of-things-but-if-you-don-t/) [Murray Bookchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-bookchin/) > [In morals as in politics anarchy is not for the weak.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mccarthy/in-morals-as-in-politics-anarchy-is-not-for-the-weak/) [Mary McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mccarthy/) > [Anarchism is a definite intellectual current in the life of our times, whose adherents advocate the abolition of economic monopolies and of all political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudolf-rocker/anarchism-is-a-definite-intellectual-current-in-the-life-of-our-times/) [Rudolf Rocker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudolf-rocker/) > [“Do not all theists insist that there can be no morality, no justice, honesty or fidelity without the belief in a Divine Power? Based…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-goldman/do-not-all-theists-insist-that-there-can-be-no-morality-no-justice/) [Emma Goldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-goldman/) > [“Does it follow that I reject all authority? Perish the thought. In the matter of boots, I defer to the authority of the bootmaker;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bakunin/does-it-follow-that-i-reject-all-authority-perish-the-thought-in-the/) [Mikhail Bakunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bakunin/) > [“An anarchist government somehow creates an impression in the hearts of citizens that no one cares.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/an-anarchist-government-somehow-creates-an-impression-in-the-hearts/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [Anarchism as a political philosophy seeks to dissolve all forms of authority and power, and if possible, wishes their complete abolition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-marshall/anarchism-as-a-political-philosophy-seeks-to-dissolve-all-forms-of/) [Peter Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-marshall/) > [And now, what has Anarchism to say to all this, this bankruptcy of republicanism, this modern empire that has grown up on the ruins…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltairine-de-cleyre/and-now-what-has-anarchism-to-say-to-all-this-this-bankruptcy-of/) [Voltairine de Cleyre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltairine-de-cleyre/) > [I see anarchism as the theoretical ideal to which we are all gradually evolving to a point where everybody can tell the truth to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/i-see-anarchism-as-the-theoretical-ideal-to-which-we-are-all/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [Anarchists are opposed to violence; everyone knows that. The main plank of anarchism is the removal of violence from human relations. It is life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/errico-malatesta/anarchists-are-opposed-to-violence-everyone-knows-that-the-main-plank/) [Errico Malatesta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/errico-malatesta/) > [“They knew that their anarchism was the product of a very high civilization, of a complex diversified culture, of a stable economy and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/they-knew-that-their-anarchism-was-the-product-of-a-very-high/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Anarchism means voluntary co-operation instead of forced participation. It means harmony and order in place of interference and disorder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-berkman/anarchism-means-voluntary-co-operation-instead-of-forced/) [Alexander Berkman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-berkman/) > [The Anarchists are simply unterrified Jeffersonian Democrats. They believe that 'the best government is that which governs least,' and that which governs least is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-tucker/the-anarchists-are-simply-unterrified-jeffersonian-democrats-they/) [Benjamin Tucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-tucker/) > [We must therefore turn to history for enlightenment; here we find that none of the proclaimed anarchist groups correspond to the libertarian position, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murray-rothbard/we-must-therefore-turn-to-history-for-enlightenment-here-we-find-that/) [Murray Rothbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murray-rothbard/) > [“I became an anarchist very early on. Anarchism, in my mind, meant taking democracy seriously and organizing prefiguratively- that is, in a way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrej-gruba-i/i-became-an-anarchist-very-early-on-anarchism-in-my-mind-meant-taking/) [Andrej Grubačić](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrej-gruba-i/) [Browse all 388 Anarchism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/anarchism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's an old anarchist dream that people can take care of their own lives.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Todd Gitlin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people-can-take-care-of-their-own/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Anarchism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people-can-take-care-of-their-own/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3b/todd-gitlin-16525_anarchism_it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people_2983371.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3b/todd-gitlin-16525_anarchism_it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people_2983371.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d3b/todd-gitlin-16525_anarchism_it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people_2983371.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's an old anarchist dream that people can take care of their own lives.” — Todd Gitlin", "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": "Todd Gitlin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-gitlin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's an old anarchist dream that...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people-can-take-care-of-their-own/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-gitlin/it-s-an-old-anarchist-dream-that-people-can-take-care-of-their-own/#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 } } ] } ```