Robert Reich Quotes

I think this Occupy Wall Street thing is great. I think that is a good thing and that people need to stand up, voice their opinions, and be heard.

More people, especially young people, are realising that if they want change, they've got to go about it themselves - they can't depend on a particular person, i.e. me, to do all the work. They are less easy to fool than they used to be, they now know what's going on all over the world.

In 2012, I see the potential for people to come together, huge moments of political and social engagement where elections are part of the strategy for change, but not the end goal and not the only thing that matters.

I think we should focus more, rather than less, on mobilising the middle classes. They often have a bit of time and money to contribute to change.

Big corporations have money and power to make sure every rule breaks their way; people have voices and votes to push back.

Even though I grew up and I didn't always like getting dragged to the meetings or the rallies or the speeches, I developed a very strong respect for participating in a democratic process.

I think voting is the lowest form of political action that you can do. A lot of times, it keeps people from doing stronger things.

You don't need role models to be part of a social movement as long as you care about the issues.

Whether you want to do a letter-writing campaign or a march or start a social media hashtag - whatever it is - know that there are people out there that are thinking exactly like you're thinking and are also afraid to take that next and very important step.

The Occupy Wall Street movement, in general, by putting this idea out there that the one percent is leeching off the 99 percent, is making a new discussion, making people figure out how to withhold their labor and come and put their issues on the table with the ruling class all over the country and all over the world.

I am not naive enough to believe that voting is the only way to bring about transformational change, just as I know that protest alone is not the sole solution to the challenges we face.

As the Occupy Movement demonstrated, it's tough to change anything when you're talking about everything.

We're seeing young people find their own voices and find their activism.

If Occupy Wall Street can see their way to more collaboration with the union movement, then there will be a great deal of political action possible.

The apathy of the people is enough to make every statue leap from its pedestal and hasten the resurrection of the dead.

Let's say there are 500 sons and daughters like you in each state. Then we could control the government.

Ours is a country where anything can be accomplished if enough people get angry... because, in America, we act on our collective anger.

I have donated money to campaigns. And I have been known to take to the street in protest. But I am more committed to my immediate politics than general politics.

I grew up with protests, marches, demonstrations, struggle. But I come from a clan of community workers.

I've been saying the Occupy Movement has got the ball rolling, and now we need to take the fight to the great indoors!

You need to remind people that you vote, you matter, and that they can't succeed without your help.

Activism, to me, I don't know if it really works. It may work for somebody else, but it does not work for me.

Occupy Wall Street is a real movement.

There is no reason that billionaires should crowd us out from our democracy.

There's a lot of activism that doesn't deal with empowerment, and you have to empower yourself in order to be relevant to any type of struggle.