“We must recognize today that it is normal for the wealthiest to be the greatest thieves. When a poor man steals it is merely a theft, a petty crime -- it is solely about survival and necessity. The rich are the ones who steal from the treasury, customs duties, and who exploit the people.”
From a speech given to the Organization of African Unity on 29 July 1987 https://www.marxists.org/archive/sankara/1987/july/29.htm
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Thomas Sankara 12
President of Upper Volta 1949–1987Related quotes

Cf. Anatole France, Le Lys Rouge [The Red Lily] (1894), ch. 7: La majestueuse égalité des lois, qui interdit au riche comme au pauvre de coucher sous les ponts, de mendier dans les rues et de voler du pain. (The law, in its majestic equality, forbids the rich as well as the poor to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal bread.)
Source: Farthing (2006), Chapter 18

To My People (July 4, 1973)
“A lie is an act of theft. It steals peoples faith and makes them resent themselves”

“It's not a crime to be gullible. But it is a crime to steal from a gullible person.”
ABC7 investigation: Self-proclaimed psychics bilk thousands from vulnerable clients http://abc7.com/news/self-proclaimed-psychics-bilk-thousands-from-clients/1954924, ABC News (4 May 2017)

Source: Miracle of the Rose