write:Unfortunately however in their desire to obtain the support of the people for revolutionary action revolutionary leaders often fall for the banking line of planning program cont

never once taking into account (except as mere objects of their actions) the men-in-a-situation to whom their program was ostensibly directed. For the truly humanist educator and the authentic revolutionary
the object of action is the reality to be transformed by them together with other people—not other men and women themselves. The oppressors are the ones who act upon the people to indoctrinate them and adjust them to a reality which must remain untouched. Unfortunately
however
in their desire to obtain the support of the people for revolutionary action
revolutionary leaders often fall for the banking line of planning program content from the top down. They approach the peasant or urban masses with projects which may correspond to their own view of the world
but not to that of the people.10 They forget that their fundamental objective is to fight 8. Furter
op. cit.y p. 165. 9. The latter
usually submerged in a colonial context
are almost umhilically linked to the world of nature
in relation to which they feel themselves to be component parts rather than shapers. 10. Our cultural workers must serve the people with great enthusiasm and devotion
and they must link themselves with the masses
not divorce themselves from the masses. In order to do so
they must act in accordance with the needs and wishes of the masses. All work done for the masses must start from their needs and not from the desire of any individual
however well-intentioned. It often happens that objectively the masses need a certain change
but subjectively they are not yet conscious of the need
not yet willing or determined to make the change. In such cases
we should wait patiently. We should not make the change until
through our work
most of the masses have become conscious of the need and are willing and determined to carry it out. Otherwise we shall isolate ourselves from the masses. . . . There are two principles here: one is the actual needs of the masses rather than what we fancy they need
and the other is the wishes of the masses
who must make up their own minds instead of our making up their minds for them. From the Selected Works of Mao-Tse-Tung
Vol. III. The United Front in Cultural Work (October 30
1944) (Peking
1967)
pp. 186-187. Freire
Paulo. Pedagogy of the Oppressed : 30th Anniversary Edition. New York: Bloomsbury Academic & Professional
2014. Accessed March 31
2022. ProQuest Ebook Central.Created from socal on 2022-03-31 17:26:48.Copyright © 2014. Bloomsbury Academic & Professional. All rights reserved.