Vandana Shiva Quotes
We have reached a stage where governments and political processes have been hijacked by the corporate world. Corporations can within five hours influence the vote in the U.S. Congress. They can influence the entire voting patterns of the Indian Parliament. Ordinary people who put governments in power might want to go in a different direction. I call this the phenomenon of the inverted state, where the state is no longer accountable to the people. The state only serves the interests of corporations.
Shiva, Vandana. Interview by David Barsamian. The Progressive, vol. 59, no. 12, Progressive, Inc., Dec. 1995, p. 32.
The then New York gubernatorial candidate was rejecting the support of a major political leader, Patrick H. McCarren, who had been a paid lobbyist for Standard Oil.
There is no law against naming an organization to disguise what its real purpose is. An organization called something like the "National Center for Environmental Protection" can actually be devoted to weakening the environmental laws. An organization that claims to be for the support of healthy foods can advocate high fat and cholesterol foods. Citizens then give their support to organizations who actually work for just the opposite of what some of the supporters think.
He made this quotation when he was a member of the Wisconsin State legislator. He was describing the influence and interaction that corporations had with the Wisconsin state legislative process.
Vandana Shiva is an Indian scholar, environmental activist, food sovereignty advocate, ecofeminist and anti-globalization author. Based in Delhi, Shiva has written more than 20 books. She is often referred as "Gandhi of grain" for her activism associated with anti-GMO movement.
