Chavez Quotes

We must confront the privileged elite who have destroyed a large part of the world. ~ Hugo Chavez

Privatization is a neoliberal and imperialist plan. Health can't be privatized because it is a fundamental human right, nor can education, water, electricity and other public services. They can't be surrendered to private capital that denies the people from their rights. ~ Hugo Chavez

Capitalism is the way of the devil and exploitation. If you really want to look at things through the eyes of Jesus Christ
who I think was the first socialist
only socialism can really create a genuine society. ~ Hugo Chavez

Liberals believe they own the franchise on minorities and can't stand any Hispanic or black who breaks rank. ~ Linda Chavez

I was a farm kid from the plains of South Venezuela, from a very poor family. I grew up in a palm tree house with an earthen floor. ~ Hugo Chavez

The picket line is the best place to train organizers. One day on the picket line is where a man makes his commitment. The longer on the picket line, the stronger the commitment. A lot of workers think they make their commitment by walking off the job when nobody sees them. But you get a guy to walk off the field when his boss is watching and, in front of the other guys, throw down his tools and march right to the picket line, that is the guy who makes our strike. The picket line is a beautiful thing because it makes a man more human. ~ Cesar Chavez

Their prejudice allowed white Southerners to look the other way when blacks were denied their most basic human rights, and it encouraged the worst of them to engage in unspeakable acts of cruelty and violence. ~ Linda Chavez

I have always said, heard, that it would not be strange that there had been civilization on Mars, but maybe capitalism arrived there, imperialism arrived and finished off the planet, ~ Hugo Chavez

We need to help students and parents cherish and preserve the ethnic and cultural diversity that nourishes and strengthens this community - and this nation. ~ Cesar Chavez

When we are really honest with ourselves we must admit our lives are all that really belong to us. So it is how we use our lives that determines the kind of men we are. ~ Cesar Chavez

We'll organize workers in this movement as long as we're willing to sacrifice. The moment we stop sacrificing, we stop organizing. ~ Cesar Chavez

Confronting the US made him [Hugo Chavez] a target for demonization. Partisan and/or lazy journalism exaggerated his faults, ignored his virtues, and downplayed the influence of strident and on occasion anti-democratic opponents. The flip side is his anti-imperialist posturing so dazzled his cheerleaders they overlooked his flaws, flaws which worsened over time, and they created their own caricature. ~ Rory Carroll

Oh Lord," Shirleen groaned, sitting down. "First she wants to be a rock star now she wants to be a stripper." Then she lifted her hand and snapped her fingers at no one in particular. "Somebody, get her another appletini before we gotta explain to Hector 'Mr. Edge' Chavez why his woman wants to strip. ~ Kristen Ashley

Violence just hurts those who are already hurt ... Instead of exposing the brutality of the oppressor, it justifies it. ~ Cesar Chavez

Though many of the poor have come to see the affluent middle class as its enemy, that class actually stands between the poor and the real powers in this society - the administrative octopus with its head in Washington, the conglomerates, the military complex. ~ Cesar Chavez

When any person suffers for someone in greater need, that person is a human. ~ Cesar Chavez

We are convinced that non-violence is more powerful than violence. We are convinced that non-violence supports you if you have a just and moral cause ... If you use violence, you have to sell part of yourself for that violence. Then you are no longer a master of your own struggle. ~ Cesar Chavez

It's very important, who has the most delegates. The superdelegates should not be the ones making the decision. ~ Linda Chavez-Thompson

Let's get one thing straight: Mexican food takes a certain amount of time to cook. If you don't have the time, don't cook it. You can rush a Mexican meal, but you will pay in some way. You can buy so-called Mexican food at too many restaurants that say they cook Mexican food. But the real food, the most savory food, is prepared with time and love and at home. So, give up the illusion that you can throw Mexican food together. Just understand that you are going to have to make and take the time. ~ Denise Chavez

Fascists are not human. A snake is more human. ~ Hugo Chavez

From the depth of need and despair, people can work together, can organize themselves to solve their own problems and fill their own needs with dignity and strength. ~ Cesar Chavez

As a little girl in Arizona, none of the women in my family had a cultural connection with Girl Scouts, but the opportunity resonated with my mother as a platform that would allow me to excel in school. ~ Anna Maria Chavez

It makes one sad to see the sell-out of President Fox, really it makes one sad. How sad that the president of a people like the Mexicans lets himself become the puppy dog of the empire. ~ Hugo Chavez

Sometimes when I speak to groups or I'm interviewed by a journalist, I ask them to imagine their communities without Girl Scouts - to imagine the thousands of food drives and clothing and toy collections that would never take place if not for Girl Scouts. ~ Anna Maria Chavez

Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore.
Cesar Chavez
Address to the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, Nov. 9, 1984 ~ Cesar Chavez

What hurts me most is poverty, and that's what led me to become a rebel. ~ Hugo Chavez

We have suffered unnumbered ills and crimes in the name of the Law of the Land. Our men, women and children have suffered not only the basic brutality of stoop labor, and the most obvious injustices of the system; they have also suffered the desperation of knowing that the system caters to the greed of callous men and not to our needs. Now we will suffer for the purpose of ending the poverty, the misery, and the injustice, with the hope that our children will not be exploited as we have been. They have imposed hungers on us, and now we hunger for justice. ~ Cesar Chavez

We also exchange oil for software technology. Uruguay is one of the biggest producers of software. We are breaking with the neoliberal model. We do not believe in free trade. We believe in fair trade and exchange, not competition but cooperation. I'm not giving away oil for free. Just using oil, first to benefit our people, to relieve poverty. ~ Hugo Chavez

He [Hugo Chavez] put poverty at the heart of political debate. Rightly so, given the country's immense inequality and poverty. He invested heavily in social programs such as literacy, health clinics, and education. He promoted Venezuela's indigenous culture and urged compatriots to take pride in its pre-Columbian history. He called time on the US treating Latin America as its backyard. ~ Rory Carroll

We know what unions have done for other people. We have seen it and we have studied and we have cherished the idea of unionism. We have seen the history and development of unions in this country and we tell the growers that we want nothing more, but that we want our own union and we are going to fight for it as long as it takes. ~ Cesar Chavez

Convinced as I am and as I am from my government that the world needs a new moral architecture over all I believe that this should be the first topic to debate in our world of today, ethics, moral. ~ Hugo Chavez

I would consider all of the legislation which I have supported meaningless if I were to sit idly by, silent, during a period which may go down in history as an era when we permitted the curtailment of our liberties. ~ Dennis Chavez

You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore. ~ Cesar Chavez

I hereby accuse the North American empire of being the biggest menace to our planet. ~ Hugo Chavez

The name of the game is to talk to people. If you don't talk to people, you can't get started ... You knock on twenty doors or so, and twenty guys tell you to go to hell, or that they haven't got time. But maybe at the fortieth or sixtieth house you find the one guy who is all you need. You're not going to organize everything; you're just going to get it started. ~ Cesar Chavez

We're not perfect, but we do have democracy. ~ Hugo Chavez

The populist zeal to seek revenge on those who make a lot of money is targeted almost exclusively at corporations. I haven't heard outcries about Hollywood actors who make millions per film, even when those movies are a bust at the box office and the talent at issue has none. There's no outrage over athletes like New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez's $33 million salary or Celtic power forward Kevin Garnett's $25 million. Nor should there be. These are exceptionally talented individuals whose teams' owners think they're worth every penny. ~ Linda Chavez

A symbol is an important thing. That is why we chose an Aztec eagle. It gives pride ... When people see it they know it means dignity. ~ Cesar Chavez

Every factory must be a school to educate, like Che Guevara said, to produce not only briquettes, steel, and aluminum, but also, above all, the new man and woman, the new society, the socialist society. ~ Hugo Chavez

It is clearly evident that our path travels through a valley of teas well known to all farm workers, because in all valleys the way of the farm worker has bene one of sacrifice for generations. Our sweat and our blood have fallen on this land to make other men rich. This Pilgrimage is a witness to the suffering we have seen for generations. ~ Cesar Chavez

These observations tie in directly with the whole question of organizing. Why do we have leaders? We put some people out in the fields and all of a sudden they hit, they click. Everyone's happy with them and they begin to move mountains. With other people there are problems and heartaches. They just don't go. When we look and see what's happening, almost invariably the differences are along the lines of willingness to sacrifice and work long hours. ~ Cesar Chavez

Chavez will hit the canvas. He will be sitting in his corner, or with the doctor or referee stopping the fight. There's no other outcome. ~ Sergio Martinez

The grand destroyer of the world, and the greatest threat ... is represented by U.S. imperialism. ~ Hugo Chavez

Although an increasing proportion of the Hispanic population is foreign-born - about half of adults in this group - English proficiency is and should remain a requirement for citizenship. ~ Linda Chavez

Girl Scouts is such an iconic organization that it's easy to overlook how daring an idea it was for founder Juliette Gordon Low to gather those first 18 girls in that troop in Savannah, Georgia. It was 1912, after all, and women wouldn't earn the right to vote for another eight years. ~ Anna Maria Chavez

To make a great dream come true, the first requirement is a great capacity to dream; the second is persistence. ~ Cesar Chavez

I nationalize strategic companies and get criticized, but when Bush does it, it's OK ... Bush is turning socialist. How are you, comrade Bush? ~ Hugo Chavez

Tom Walls' buddies remain an isolated minority, except during times of economic or social stress, when a mass following develops to blame cranky sociopaths for the problems besetting society. If it weren't for brown-nosing evil firebrands, he would have no friends. The ideas backing up his rejoinders are extremely superficial and sex-crazed. ~ Linda Chavez

I think developed countries - so-called developed countries - should reflect upon the way of living and the waste of energy. ~ Hugo Chavez

What they have implanted here, which is really a 'gringo' custom, is terrorism. They disguise children as witches and wizards, that is contrary to our culture. ~ Hugo Chavez

Non-violence is a very powerful weapon. Most people don't understand the power of non-violence and tend to be amazed by the whole idea. Those who have been involved in bringing about change and see the difference between violence and non-violence are firmly committed to a lifetime of non-violence, not because it is easy or because it is cowardly, but because it is an effective and very powerful way. ~ Cesar Chavez

Themselves on the building's famous balcony. Millions more will watch the ceremony and celebrations on live television
crowded around screens in their homes, at street parties in towns and villages and at major landmarks. Lawmakers are already lobbying London Mayor Boris Johnson to install a giant screen in the city's iconic Trafalgar Square. Britain's Foreign Office said royal officials had sent their regrets to Estibalis Chavez, ~ Anonymous

The unions claim the deck is stacked against them when it comes to labor laws, but the truth is many private and public sector workers are forced to pay union dues as a condition of their employment, yet they have little say in how the unions spend their money. ~ Linda Chavez

Talk is cheap ... It is the way we organize and use our lives everyday that tells what we believe in. ~ Cesar Chavez

Our struggle is not easy. Those who oppose our cause are rich and powerful and they have many allies in high places. We are poor. Our allies are few. But we have something the rich do not own. We have our bodies and spirits and the justice of our cause as our weapons. ~ Cesar Chavez

The fight is never about grapes or lettuce. It is always about people. ~ Cesar Chavez

Hugo Chavez has tried to steal an inspiring phrase 'Patria o muerte, venceremos.' It does not belong to him. It belongs to a free Cuba. ~ Mitt Romney

In fact, the U.S. military has bent over backwards to respect the religious beliefs of some very dangerous fanatics who want to kill us. ~ Linda Chavez

We must reduce all the emissions that are destroying the planet. However, that requires a change in lifestyle, a change in the economic model: We must go from capitalism to socialism. ~ Hugo Chavez

The ones who close the path for peacefull revolution, at the same time open the path for violent revolution. ~ Hugo Chavez

I can see why people find him [Hugo Chávez] charming. He's very ebullient, as they say. I've heard him make a speech, though, and he has a vice that's always very well worth noticing because it's always a bad sign: he doesn't know when to sit down. He's worse than Castro was. He won't shut up. Then he told me that he didn't think the United States landed on the moon and didn't believe in the existence of Osama bin Laden. He thought all of this was all a put-up job. He's a wacko. ~ Christopher Hitchens

Mr. Bush is an illegitimate President. In Florida, his brother Jeb deleted many black voters from the electoral registers. So this President is the result of a fraud. ~ Hugo Chavez

Research shows that girls look at leadership differently than boys. ~ Anna Maria Chavez

They're going to need a DNA test to identify him after the fight (Chavez Jr.) ~ Sergio Martinez

If the climate were a bank, they would already have saved it. ~ Hugo Chavez

We have seen the future, and the future is ours. ~ Cesar Chavez

You are never strong enough that you don't need help. ~ Cesar Chavez

We must understand that the highest form of freedom carries with it the greatest measure of discipline. ~ Cesar Chavez

The Chavez-Obama pictures will join a postmodern photo array that includes Donald Rumsfeld gifting Saddam Hussein with spurs from President Reagan. ~ Christine Pelosi

Only farmers and the young, who live dependent upon change, understand what it is to know the continual flowering of life, however subtle. ~ Denise Chavez

If you win non-violently, then you have a double victory, you have not only won your fight, but you remain free. ~ Cesar Chavez

We know next to nothing about the relationship between Chavez and Raul Castro. One thing, though, is certain. The Cuban military and political elite do not regard Chavez as a logical successor to Fidel Castro in Latin America. ~ Mark Falcoff

The Labor Department's Hall of Honor recognizes men and women - like Cesar Chavez, Helen Keller and the Workers of the Memphis Sanitation Strike - who have made invaluable contributions to the welfare of American workers. ~ Thomas Perez

There are people you think you could trust but there are few you should beware most. They will stab you when you least expect it. Never underestimate the art of deception and those who master it. There could be pangs behind their smiles. ~ Ana Chavez

I'm a Christian. I want the world of justice and equality. This is the only way to achieve peace. ~ Hugo Chavez

The only way to save the world is through socialism, but a socialism that exists within a democracy; there's no dictatorship here. ~ Hugo Chavez

The imperialist, genocidal, fascist attitude of the U.S. president has no limits. I think Hitler would be like a suckling baby next to George W. Bush, ~ Hugo Chavez

If you are interested in preventing animal suffering, the first thing you should give up is eggs and milk because the animals who produce those foods lead the most unhappy lives. You would do better to eat meat and stop eating eggs and dairy products. ~ Cesar Chavez

The infrastructure, institutions and social fabric of Venezuela are deteriorating, and people realize the Chavez government has been the problem, not the solution. ~ Leopoldo Lopez

Julio Cesar Chavez will never be ready to fight me. ~ Sergio Martinez

For generations, even many otherwise decent white Southerners learned to despise black people. ~ Linda Chavez

I remember. How many minutes do I have left President? About one, one minute. ~ Hugo Chavez

One of the techniques terrorists employ is to allege torture and mistreatment when they are captured, regardless of whether it is true. ~ Linda Chavez

The descendants of those who crucified Christ ... have taken ownership of the riches of the world, a minority has taken ownership of the gold of the world, the silver, the minerals, water, the good lands, petrol, well, the riches, and they have concentrated the riches in a small number of hands. ~ Hugo Chavez

I have said it already, I am convinced that the way to build a new and better world is not capitalism. Capitalism leads us straight to hell. ~ Hugo Chavez

If you really want to make a friend, go to someone's house and eat with him ... the people who give you their food give you their heart. ~ Cesar Chavez

I got toe-to-toe with him and yelled in his face, "Leave me and my Dad alone, Eddie Chavez!" Eddie leaned into me, so close he was all I could see. Quietly, he asked, "Is it wrong that I want to kiss you right now? ~ Kristen Ashley

For us Catholics, John Paul II will be remembered as a traveling Pope ... and we should also remember he preached world peace. When the United States invaded Iraq, for example, John Paul II said it was an illegal and immoral act. ~ Hugo Chavez

However important the struggle is and however much misery and poverty and degradation exist, we know that it cannot be more important than one human life. ~ Cesar Chavez

What we do know absolutely is that human lives are worth more than grapes and that innocent-looking grapes on the table may disguise poisonous residues hidden deep inside where washing cannot reach. ~ Cesar Chavez

Don't let yourselves be poisoned by those wandering Jews. ~ Hugo Chavez

Unfortunately, in this Obama Government, we have charges of drug trafficking and terrorism. For Evo, it's drug trafficking. For Hugo, it's terrorism. Evo Morales, drug trafficking. Hugo Chavez, terrorism. ~ Evo Morales

I would like to invite the citizens of Great Britain and the citizens of the U.S. and the citizens of the world to come here and walk freely through the streets of Venezuela, to talk to anyone they want, to watch television, to read the papers. We are building a true democracy, with human rights for everyone, social rights, education, health care, pensions, social security, and jobs. ~ Hugo Chavez

"The life of the union depends upon more people getting to share the limelight, because with the limelight also comes responsibility and with the responsibility comes a little sharing of the load." "There isn't enough money to organize poor people. There never is enough money to organize anyone. If you put it on the basis of money, you're not going to succeed." ~ Cesar Chavez

We must reduce the emissions 100 percent. In Venezuela, the emissions are currently insignificant compared to the emissions of the developed countries. ~ Hugo Chavez

Only when we have become nonviolent towards all life will we have learned to live well with others. ~ Cesar Chavez

Venezuelan interests are to be defended by Venezuela. The U.S. should defend the interests of the U.S. Where are the U.S. people, where are the intellectuals, who could put limits on their government? ~ Hugo Chavez

You know, I don't know about this doctrine of assassination, but if [President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela] thinks we're trying to assassinate him, I think that we really ought to go ahead and do it. It's a whole lot cheaper than starting a war. And I don't think any oil shipments will stop. [ ... ] We have the ability to take him out, and I think the time has come that we exercise that ability. We don't need another $200 billion war to get rid of one, you know, strong-arm dictator. It's a whole lot easier to have some of the covert operatives do the job and then get it over with. ~ Pat Robertson

Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sakes and for our own. ~ Cesar Chavez

There is no such thing as defeat in non-violence. ~ Cesar Chavez