How to overcome apathy and find your power | Dolores Huerta

"Sí, se puede!" — "Yes, we can!" It's the rallying cry Dolores Huerta came up with as a young activist in the 1970s, and she's lived by it in her tireless pursuit of civil rights ever since. With her signature wit and humor, Huerta reflects on her life's work, offering inspiration for anybody trying to overcome apathy, get involved and find their own power.

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40 Comments on How to overcome apathy and find your power | Dolores Huerta

  1. I love this message. We all have a voice. Mine is pedantic and shrill, but I can still make positive changes in this world.
    ¡Sí, se puede!

    • +CyberCheese How to stop hating exercise: start exercising. You can feel like s* as long as you want, but you’ll never get over the hump unless you simply engage and leave your behaviors some time to give you some tangible feedback.

    • I got rid of _my_ apathy by going out and telling others *12:09** “get rid of the apathy; get up off of that sidewalk!” :-)* —see? I’m no longer apathetic, just irate at the apathy of others. The best part about my new hobby is that it is tax deductible!

    • Your comment is understandable but sounds unnatural. This sounds more natural:
      “I watch Ted all the time to improve my English. It motivates me to educate myself. Thanks Ted.”
      Good luck with your studies! And don’t listen to the people saying this is a bad source. It’s perfectly suited for what you are using it for.

  2. Soooo… no ACTUAL advice on overcoming apathy, then? Just saying a phrase does squat. Apathy is real. It’s debilitating. It’s soul destroying. It’s not about the fight in front of you. It’s about the next ten, next hundred, next thousand. How many fights do you have in you? How many need to be fought? How many people will fight beside you? How many will fight against you? Which fights are the most important? Which can be postponed and which can be abandoned because greater fights exist?

    This is the nature of apathy… seeing the monumental horror of the wars ahead, the great impossible climb, building a ladder to the moon. You can ignore the nature of apathy for a time, but eventually the ink black shadow of it will drown you. So the question is… how do you beat apathy? Because a bumper sticker sentiment isn’t going to cut it.

    • This sounds more like anxiety. Her advice was to go and try, even if it looks like you can’t. Many people choose not to do things because their logic tells them that they will fail, or that it is too scary to overcome.

      Many times I have chosen to ignore my anxiety and choose to do something intimidating anyway. Most of those times I had been wrong and everything worked out just fine. Not every time, but most of them.

      She is suggesting that each person realize their own power and get involved with the world that they live in. Knowing your power can help remove apathy, for many.

    • +Rose Rasmussen Was just going to say this. The thought processes of OP sounds exactly like anxious stalling. I do it too. I find it helps to just focus on the one battle in front of you.

    • This talk is about realizing you have a voice and can use it, as many people might not even perceive their lives that way, letting life pass them by. To realize it is a matter of picking up that phone, or go do that thing, to make a change, and that you have the right to do so.
      It sounds like you suffer from anxiety, not apathy.

    • Heh. Blink and you miss it: by telling others *12:09** “get rid of the apathy; get up off of that sidewalk!” :-)*
      …if it’s really that easy…

  3. “we have to live simply so that others can simply live.” Amen Momma. Took a pen and wrote those very words down just last week. Timing. Call it the labor of Rosa Mystica. I am very thankful for your spirit Momma. “For all has passed- Thanks. For all that will be- Yes.”

  4. I am in apathy when I am scared of communicating in a world of communication. Most people are like me. We will rise and rule the world.

  5. “Sí, se puede” is _yes, _*_you_*_ can_ — with due respect to Chavez, Huerta, the UFW, and all Chicanos/Latinos/Hispanohablantes!
    However, I don’t think apathy is overcome just by giving permission, or by saying, you (or we) can, or by telling others *12:09** “get rid of the apathy; get up off of that sidewalk!” :-)*
    Aiaíai, Sra. Huerta, if it was that easy…

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