Simon Schama Quotes
From 1789, perhaps even before that, it had been the willingness of politicians to exploit either the threat or the fact of violence that had given them the power to challenge constituted authority. Bloodshed was not the unfortunate by product of revolution, it was the source of energy.
Schama, Simon. Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution. Alfred A. Knopf, 1989.
Many radicals of the day argued that violence was a legitimate form of protest and self defense. Goldman urged then not to advocate violence because under the then existing law and practical considerations, that gave the law enforcement authorities the tools to persecute the dissidents.
Sir Simon Michael Schama CBE FBA FRSL is an English historian specialising in art history, Dutch history, Jewish history and French history. He is a University Professor of History and Art History at Columbia University, New York.
