grave-wisdom:

“When you talk about a revolution most people think violence without realizing that the real content of any kind of revolutionary thrust lies in the principles and the goals that you are striving for not in the way the way you reach them. On the other hand because of the way this society is organized, because of the violence that exists on the surface everywhere you have to expect that they are going to be such explosions, you have to expect things like that as reactions. If you are a black person and live in the black community all your life and walk out on the street every day seeing white police men surrounding you, and when you live under a situation like that constantly and then you ask me whether I approve of violence? That doesn’t make any sense at all.

Whether I approve of guns? I grew up in Birmingham, Alabama. Some very good friends of mine were killed by bombs, bombs that were planted by racists. I remember from the time I was very small, I remember the sounds of bombs exploding across the street, our house shaking, I remember my father having to have guns at his disposal at all times because of the fact at any moment we might expect to be attacked. The man who was at that time in complete control of the city government, his name was Bill Conner would often get on the radio and make statements like, “niggers have moved into a white neighborhood we better expect some bloodshed tonight”, and sure enough there would be bloodshed.

That’s why when someone asks me about violence, I just find it incredible because what it means is that the person who is asking that question has absolutely no idea what black people have gone through, what black people have experienced in this country since the time the first black person was kidnapped from the shores of Africa.”

Angela Davis 

(via lovehustle)