Frank Barat

“I work in a building that hosts various organizations and charities working for
global justice. Some focus on Western Sahara; some on Palestine; others on
torture, Latin America, or Africa. It is a good environment to work in,
surrounded by people who believe in a fairer and better society, and who have
decided to act on their beliefs and dedicate their lives to trying to change the
world. Sounds utopian, maybe. But the important word here is probably not the
one you are thinking of. It’s trying. Trying and trying again. Never stopping.
That is a victory in itself.”
― Frank Barat, Freedom is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine and the Foundations of a Movement

“I am writing this sitting in my small office in Brussels. The
month of June is nearly gone and the heat has just arrived.
I work in a building that hosts various organizations and
charities working for global justice. Some focus on Western
Sahara; some on Palestine; others on torture, Latin
America, or Africa. It is a good environment to work in,
surrounded by people who believe in a fairer and better
society, and who have decided to act on their beliefs and
dedicate their lives to trying to change the world. Sounds
utopian, maybe. But the important word here is probably
not the one you are thinking of. It’s trying. Trying and
trying again. Never stopping. That is a victory in itself.
Everyone and everything tells you that “outside” you will
not succeed, that it is too late, that we live in an epoch
where a revolution cannot happen anymore. Radical
changes are a thing of the past. You can be an outsider, but
not outside the system, and you can have political beliefs,
even radical ones, but they need to stay within the bounds
of the permissible, inside that bubble that has been drawn
for you by the elites.”
― Frank Barat, Freedom is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine and the Foundations of a Movement