Measure of a Man, Power, Plato

“The measure of a man is what he does with power.” ― Plato

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/879.Plato.

Women's Work, Never Done, Underpaid, The Torch, Joyce Stevens

"Because women's work is never done and is underpaid or unpaid or boring or repetitious and we're the first to get fired and what we look like is more important than what we do and if we get raped it's our fault and if we get beaten we must have provoked it and if we raise our voices we're nagging bitches and if we enjoy sex we're nymphos and if we don't we're frigid and if we love women it's because we can't get a "real" man and if we ask our doctor too many questions we're neurotic and/or pushy and if we expect childcare we're selfish and if we stand up for our rights we're aggressive and "unfeminine" and if we don't we're typical weak females and if we want to get married we're out to trap a man and if we don't we're unnatural and because we still can't get an adequate safe contraceptive but men can walk on the moon and if we can't cope or don't want a pregnancy we're made to feel guilty about abortion and...for lots of other reasons we are part of the women's liberation movement." - Author unknown, quoted in The Torch, 14 September 1987

I first read these words on a poster at Brigit Books in St. Petersburg, Florida. Brigit Books has long since closed (darn!). But I was able to find out that Joyce Stevens wrote the above quote as a Union Song for Women's Liberation Broadsheet, International Woman's Day, 1975.

Numerous links had this listed as "Author unknown, quoted in The Torch." While I was able to find links to several magazines and newsletters listed as The Torch, none of them were ones that had listed this quote. However, we now know who wrote these words.

Older I Get, Definition of Maturity, Brett Butler

“The older I get, the simpler the definition of maturity seems: it's the length of time between when I realize someone is a jackass and when I tell them that they're one.” - Brett Butler

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 76.

Keep a Diary, Keep You, Mae West

“Keep a diary and one day it'll keep you.” - Mae West

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 33.

Infatuation, Love, Judith Viorst

“Infatuation is when you think he's as sexy as Robert Redford, as smart as Henry Kissinger, as noble as Ralph Nader, as funny as Woody Allen, and as athletic as Jimmy Conners. Love is when you realize that he's as sexy as Woody Allen, as smart as Jimmy Connors, as funny as Ralph Nader, as athletic as Henry Kissinger and nothing like Robert Redford - but you'll take him anyway.” ― Judith Viorst, Redbook 1975

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/3080.Judith_Viorst.

Readers, Leaders, Harry S. Truman

“Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” ― Harry S. Truman

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/203941.Harry_Truman.

Begin at Once, Live, Separate Life, Seneca

“Begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life.” ― Seneca

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/4918776.Seneca.

Biggest Sin, Sitting, Florynce Kennedy

“The biggest sin is sitting on your ass.” - Fleet-tongued Florynce Kennedy. Fortunately, the Ur-activist of the Sixties and Seventies seldom stayed down in the dumps for long.

Found in Loose Cannons: Devastating Dish from the World's Wildest Women, complied by Autumn Stephens, page 70.

Measure Democracy, Dissidents, Assimilated Conformists, Abbie Hoffman

"You measure democracy by the freedom it gives its dissidents, not the freedom it gives its assimilated conformists." - Abbie Hoffman

Found at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/a/abbie_hoffman.html.

Worse Than Failing, Not Having Tried, What If?, Gloria Steinem

“The only thing worse than failing is not having tried. You will walk around forever thinking, What if?” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 75.

Millions of Voices, Change, Barack Obama

“Nothing can stand in the way of the power of millions of voices calling for change.” ― Barack Obama

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/6356.Barack_Obama.

Strength, Break a Hershey Bar, Eat Just One of the Pieces, Judith Viorst, Love and Guilt and the Meaning of Life, Etc.

“Strength is the capacity to break a Hershey bar into four pieces with your bare hands - and then eat just one of the pieces.” ― Judith Viorst, Love and Guilt and the Meaning of Life, Etc.

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/3080.Judith_Viorst.

Rainbow, Rain, Dolly Parton

"The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain!" - Dolly Parton

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/144067.Dolly_Parton.

Life Doesn't Count, Do Your Small Part, Better World, Barack Obama

“What I’ve realized is that life doesn’t count for much unless you’re willing to do your small part to leave our children — all of our children — a better world. Any fool can have a child. That doesn’t make you a father. It’s the courage to raise a child that makes you a father.” - Barack Obama

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/6356.Barack_Obama.

Race, Impostor Syndrome, Rachel Entrekin

“During the race … the mantra that I kept saying was like ‘Why not you?’ I felt a lot of impostor syndrome when I was out front at mile 50 – like ‘What are you doing?’ … Maybe especially women, we tend to talk ourselves out of even trying to do things because we think that we’re not qualitifed or we don’t have the experiences or we don’t whatever – but why not? Why not try?” - American ultramarathoner Rachel Entrekin, who beat out every other runner (men included) in a record-breaking finish in Arizona’s Cocodona 250.

Found in Summer 2026 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 6.

Died, Buried, Benjamin Franklin

“Many people die at twenty five and aren't buried until they are seventy five.” ― Benjamin Franklin

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/289513.Benjamin_Franklin.

Misunderstood, Condemned, Gloria Steinem

“Being misunderstood by people whose opinions you value is way more painful than being condemned by your enemies.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 91.

Marriage, Fifty-Fifty Proposition, Men, Percentages, Flo Kennedy

“Any woman who still thinks marriage is a fifty-fifty proposition is only proving that she doesn't understand either men or percentages.” - Flo Kennedy

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 71.

Writing, Money, Famous, Stephen King

“Writing isn't about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid, or making friends. In the end, it's about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life, as well. It's about getting up, getting well, and getting over. Getting happy, okay? Getting happy.” ― Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

Found in Goodreads' Stephen King quotes section.

Your Actions, Legacy, Inspires Others, Excellent Leadear, Dolly Parton

"If your actions create a legacy that inspires others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, then, you are an excellent leader." - Dolly Parton

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/144067.Dolly_Parton.

Impossible Odds, Change, Barack Obama

“In the face of impossible odds, people who love this country can change it.” ― Barack Obama

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/6356.Barack_Obama.

Justice, Outraged, Benjamin Franklin

“Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are.” ― Benjamin Franklin

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/289513.Benjamin_Franklin.

Poetry, Dream, Vision, Audre Lorde

"Poetry is not only dream and vision; it is the skeleton architecture of our lives. It lays the foundations for a future of change, a bridge across our fears of what has never been before." - Audre Lorde

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audrelorde408960.html.

No Man, Wise, Seneca

“No man was ever wise by chance” ― Seneca

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/4918776.Seneca.

Stands for Nothing, Fall for Anything, Malcolm X

"A man who stands for nothing will fall for anything." - Malcolm X

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/malcolm_x_379121.

Option, Question Everything, Noam Chomsky

“I was never aware of any other option but to question everything.” ― Noam Chomsky

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Change, Respond, Timothy Leary

“If you want to change the way people respond to you, change the way you respond to people.” ― Timothy Leary

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/47718.Timothy_Leary.

Health, National Concern, Harry S. Truman

“We should resolve now that the health of this nation is a national concern; that financial barriers in the way of attaining health shall be removed; that the health of all it's citizens deserves the help of all the nation.” ― Harry S. Truman

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/203941.Harry_Truman.

Being a Success, Mediocre World, Lily Tomlin

“Sometimes I worry about being a success in a mediocre world.” - Lily Tomlin

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 90.

Amateurs, Inspiration, Work, Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

“Amateurs sit and wait for inspiration, the rest of us just get up and go to work.” ― Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/3389.Stephen_King?page=2.

Duty of Our Generation, Solidarity, Weak, Persecuted, Lonely, Sick, Despair, Elie Wiesel

"This is the duty of our generation as we enter the twenty-first century -- solidarity with the weak, the persecuted, the lonely, the sick, and those in despair. It is expressed by the desire to give a noble and humanizing meaning to a community in which all members will define themselves not by their own identity but by that of others." - Elie Wiesel

This can be found at http://www.wisdomquotes.com/authors/elie-wiesel/.

Love, Poverty, Toothache, Mae West

“Love conquers all things except poverty and a toothache.” - Mae West

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 67.

One of the Lessons, Stay True, Goals, Michelle Obama

“One of the lessons that I grew up with was to always stay true to yourself and never let what somebody else says distract you from your goals. And so when I hear about negative and false attacks, I really don't invest any energy in them, because I know who I am.” - Michelle Obama

Found in Quotes for Nasty Women: Empowering Wisdom from Women Who Break the Rules, by Linda Picone, pages 22 – 23.

Optimism, Future, Take Responsibility, Noam Chomsky

“Optimism is a strategy for making a better future. Because unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so.” ― Noam Chomsky

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Rich, Politician, Crook, Harry S. Truman

“Show me a man that gets rich by being a politician, and I'll show you a crook.” ― Harry Truman

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/203941.Harry_Truman.

Cruelty, Weakness, Seneca

“All cruelty springs from weakness.” ― Seneca, Seneca's Morals: Of a Happy Life, Benefits, Anger and Clemency

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/4918776.Seneca.

Somebody, Do Something, Lily Tomlin

“I always wondered why somebody doesn't do something about that. Then I realized that I was somebody.” - Lily Tomlin

Found in Quotes for Nasty Women: Empowering Wisdom from Women Who Break the Rules, by Linda Picone, page 68.

Growth, Unknown, Gloria Steinem

“Growth comes from saying yes to the unknown.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 52.

Opposite, Indifference, Elie Wiesel

"The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference." - Elie Wiesel

This was found at Wisdom Quotes, and can be viewed at http://www.wisdomquotes.com/quote/elie-wiesel-4.html.

No Lady, Member of Congress, Mary Norton

“I'm no lady; I'm a member of Congress, and I'll proceed on that basis.” - Mary Norton, the first female Democrat ever elected to Congress entirely on her own merits, rather than creeping in on the coattails of a deceased spouse.

Found in Wild Words from Wild Women: An Unbridled Collection of Candid Observations & Extremely Opinionated Bon Mots, Compiled by Autumn Stephens, page 153.

Powerful, Crimes, Noam Chomsky

“For the powerful, crimes are those that others commit.” ― Noam Chomsky, Imperial Ambitions: Conversations on the Post-9/11 World

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Censorship, Thought Control, Secrecy and Darkness, Pat Frank, Alas Babylon

“Censorship and thought control can exist only in secrecy and darkness.” ― Pat Frank, Alas, Babylon

Found on Goodreads. Read more here.

Being a Woman, Difficult Task, Dealing With Men, Joseph Conrad

"Being a woman is a terribly difficult task, since it consists principally in dealing with men." - Joseph Conrad

Found on Brainy Quote, at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/josephconr105151.html.

Recession, Depression, Harry S. Truman

“It’s a recession when your neighbor loses his job; it’s a depression when you lose your own.” ― Harry S. Truman

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/203941.Harry_Truman.

Master, Expects of You, Teacher, Expectations, Patricia Neal

“A master can tell you what he expects of you. A teacher, though, awakens your own expectations.” - Patricia Neal

Found in The Quotable Woman, by Running Press, Editor, page 35.

Rat Race, Win, Still a Rat, Lily Tomlin

“The trouble with being in the rat race is that even if you win, you're still a rat.” - Lily Tomlin

Found in The Quotable Woman, by Running Press, Editor, page 27.

Guns, Constitutional Amendment, Women, Eleanor Smeal

“Just think – guns have a constitutional amendment protecting them and women don't.” - Hotshot Eleanor Smeal, president of NOW from 1977 to 1987.

Found in Loose Cannons: Devastating Dish from the World's Wildest Women, complied by Autumn Stephens, page 71.

Strong Men, Role Models, Michelle Obama

“Because let's be very clear, strong men, men who are truly role models, don't need to put down women to make themselves feel powerful.” - First lady Michelle Obama, campaigning for Clinton in October after the release of Donald Trump's Access Hollywood video.

From Ms Magazine: Winter 2016, page 6.

Increase Fear, Control, Noam Chomsky

“The more you can increase fear of drugs, crime, welfare mothers, immigrants and aliens, the more you control all of the people.” ― Noam Chomsky

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

What You Can Accomplish, Credit, Harry S. Truman

“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” ― Harry S. Truman

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/203941.Harry_Truman.

Luck, Preparation, Opportunity, Seneca

“Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity.” ― Seneca

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/4918776.Seneca.

Sit on the Sidelines, Call to Action, Eleanor Smeal, Kathy Spillar

"This is not the time for feminists to sit on the sidelines. We must fight on. We have come too far and worked too hard to go back now.

"This is a call to action. If you have the ability, desire and drive to volunteer for your favorite feminist cause or organization, the time to do so is now. Clinics need escorts; nonprofits need volunteer researchers, event organizers, administrators, lawyers, artists, designers, computer techies and fundraisers. Everyone and every skill count. We all need your passion, encouragement, skills, commitment, financial support—big or small." Eleanor Smeal, Kathy Spillar, Ms. Magazine, from the special election issue's and blog's "This is a Call to Action".

Ignorance, Excuse, Real Thing, Irene Peter

“Ignorance is no excuse – it's the real thing.” - Irene Peter

Found in The Last Word: A Treasury of Women's Quotes, by Carolyn Warner, page 5.

Woman, Money, Room of Her Own, Virginia Woolf

“A woman must have money and a room of her own.” - Virginia Woolf

Found in The Quotable Woman, by Running Press, Editor, page 18.

Too Angry, Keep Your Mouth Shut, Michelle Obama

“Don't ever, ever let anyone tell you that you're too angry, or that you 'should keep your mouth shut.' There will always be those who want to keep you silent, to have you be seen but not heard, or maybe they don't even want to see you at all. But those people don't know your story, and if you listen to them, then nothing will ever change.” - Former First Lady Michelle Obama, speaking to the graduating class of 2020.

Found in Ms. Magazine, Fall 2020 issue, page 6.

Government, Silencing the Voice of Opposition, Increasingly Repressive Measures, Harry S. Truman

“Once a government is committed to the principle of silencing the voice of opposition, it has only one way to go, and that is down the path of increasingly repressive measures, until it becomes a source of terror to all its citizens and creates a country where everyone lives in fear." - Harry S. Truman, [Special Message to the Congress on the Internal Security of the United States, August 8, 1950]”

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/203941.Harry_Truman.

Never to be Silent, Always Take Sides, Neutrality, Elie Wiesel

"I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented." - Elie Wiesel

Found on Wisdom Quotes at http://www.wisdomquotes.com/authors/elie-wiesel/.

Speak, Afraid, Silent, Better to Speak, Audre Lorde

"When we speak we are afraid our words will not be heard or welcomed. But when we are silent, we are still afraid. So it is better to speak." - Audre Lorde

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/audre_lorde_392663.

Programs, Remove a List, Words and Phrases, Funding Applications, Rep. Summer Lee

“Your agency told programs to remove a list of nearly 200 words and phrases from their funding applications, including the world Black. Do you have any idea of how we could solve the Black maternal mortality crisis if we can’t say ‘Black?’” - Rep. Summer Lee (D-Pa.), questioning Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on how HHS will address disparities affecting Black women.

Found in Summer 2026 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 6.

Confused, Thinking Clearly, Irene Peter

“Today, if you're not confused, you are not thinking clearly.” - Irene Peter

Found in The Last Word: A Treasury of Women's Quotes, by Carolyn Warner, page 48.

Tell the Truth About Yourself, Other People, Virginia Woolf

“If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people.” - Virginia Woolf

Found in The Last Word: A Treasury of Women's Quotes, by Carolyn Warner, page 56.

Men of Privilege, Forests, Children, Compassion, Winona LaDuke

“I would argue yes. In fact, I would question the inverse. Can men of privilege...who do not feel the impact of policies on forests, children or their ability to breastfeed children...actually have the compassion to make policy that is reflection of the interests of others. At this point, I think not.” ― Winona LaDuke

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/107298.Winona_LaDuke.

Blind With Patriotism, Wrong is Wrong, Malcolm X

"You're not supposed to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who says it." - Malcolm X

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/malcolm_x_390503.

America, False, Hope, Barack Obama

“In the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope.” ― Barack Obama

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/6356.Barack_Obama.

Racism, Prejudice, Indifference, Thurgood Marshall

“I wish I could say that racism and prejudice were only distant memories. We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust…We must dissent because America can do better, because America has no choice but to do better.” ― Thurgood Marshall

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/331989.Thurgood_Marshall.

Care, Atteneion, Ladies, Rebllion, Abigail Adams

“If particular care and attention is not paid to the Ladies we are determined to foment a Rebellion, and will not hold ourselves bound by any Laws in w hich we have no voice, or Representation.” – Abigail Adams, March 31, 1776

Found in Summer 2026 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 52.

Changing the World, Changing Himself, Leo Tolstoy

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.” ― Leo Tolstoy

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Nice in Life, Nerve, Georgia O'Keeffe

“It's not enough to be nice in life. You've got to have nerve.” - Georgia O'Keeffe

Found in Quotes for Nasty Women: Empowering Wisdom from Women Who Break the Rules, by Linda Picone, page 55.

Talent, Table Salt, Hard Work, Stephen King

"Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work." - Stephen King

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/stephen_king_163656.

Liberal, Radical, Conservative Advocate, Gloria Steinem

“No man can call himself liberal, or radical, or even a conservative advocate of fair play if his work depends in any way of the unpaid or underpaid labor of women at home or in the workplace.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 64.

Convictions, Science, Historical Experience, Elections, Alexey Navalny, Patriot: A Memoir

“But I will not give up either my ideas or my homeland. My convictions are not exotic, sectarian, or radical. On the contrary, everything I believe in is based on science and historical experience. Those in power should change. The best way to elect leaders is through honest and free elections. Everyone needs a fair legal system. Corruption destroys the state. There should be no censorship. The future lies in these principles.” ― Alexey Navalny, Patriot: A Memoir

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/7149583.Alexei_Navalny.

Fashion, Rise of Fascism, Thinness, Hannah Einbinder

“My fashion hot take is that as we see a rise of fascism, there is a direct correlation with thinness, to make women take up less space.” – Hacks costar Hannah Einbinder, in an interview with Cosmopolitan.

Found in Summer 2026 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 6.

Scariest Moment, Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

“The scariest moment is always just before you start.” ― Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

Found in Goodreads Stephen King quotes section.

History, Grave Threats, Liberty, Constitutional Rights, Thurgood Marshall

“History teaches that grave threats to liberty often come in times of urgency, when constitutional rights seem too extravagant to endure.” ― Thurgood Marshall

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/331989.Thurgood_Marshall.

Beginning, Today, Mary Shelley

“The beginning is always today.” ― Mary Shelley

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/11139.Mary_Wollstonecraft_Shelley.

Serious Political Leader, Fellow Citizens, Alexei Navalny, Patriot: A Memoir

“A serious political leader cannot simply decide to turn his back on a huge number of his fellow citizens because he personally dislikes their views.” ― Alexei Navalny, Patriot: A Memoir

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/7149583.Alexei_Navalny.

Fashion Dropout, Harper's Bazaar, Molly Ivins

“Although a life-long fashion dropout, I have absorbed enough by reading Harper's Bazaar while waiting at the dentist's to have grasped that the purpose of fashion is to make A Statement. My own modest Statement, discerned by true cognoscenti, is, 'Woman Who Wears Clothes So She Won't Be Naked.'” - Molly Ivins

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 37.

DOW, S&P, Nasdaq, Pam Bondi, Epstein Files

“The DOW is over 50,000 right now, the S&P at almost 7,000, and the Nasdaq smashing records. … That’s what we should be talking about.” - Attorney General Pam Bondi, complaining to the House Judiciary Committee about its hearing on the Epstein files – while survivors of Jeffrey Epstein were seated just behind her.

Found in Spring 2026 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 6.

Pill, Birth, Gloria Steinem

“When the pill came along, more women were able to give birth to themselves.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 18.

We the People, White Male Citizens, Male Citizens, Whole People, Their Rights, Susan B. Anthony

"It was we, the people; not we, the white male citizens; nor yet we, the male citizens; but we, the whole people, who formed the Union. And we formed it, not to give the blessings of liberty, but to secure them; not to the half of ourselves and the half of our posterity, but to the whole people -- women as well as men." - Susan B. Anthony, speech after her arrest for voting in the 1872 presidential election

"Men, their rights and nothing more; women, their rights and nothing less." - Susan B. Anthony, The Revolution, Jan. 8, 1868

First quote ("It was we, the people...") found at http://www.notable-quotes.com/a/anthony_susan_b.html.

Second quote ("Men, their rights...") found at http://www.notable-quotes.com/a/anthony_susan_b_ii.html.

Humor, Anger, Make-Up, Stephen King, Bag of Bones

“Humor is almost always anger with its make-up on.” ― Stephen King, Bag of Bones

Found on GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/3389.Stephen_King.

Write, Do Not Speak, Voice, Terrified, Silence, Audre Lorde

"I write for those women who do not speak, for those who do not have a voice because they were so terrified, because we are taught to respect fear more than ourselves. We've been taught that silence would save us, but it won't." - Audre Lorde

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audrelorde409007.html.

Truth, Justice, Malcolm X

"I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no matter who it's for or against." - Malcolm X

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/malcolm_x_385966

Doing What You Do, Something, Grace Paley

“You come to doing what you do by not being able to do something.” - Grace Paley, failed poet, acclaimed short story writer.

Found in Wild Words from Wild Women: An Unbridled Collection of Candid Observations & Extremely Opinionated Bon Mots, Compiled by Autumn Stephens, page 163.

Chubby Hubby Ice Cream, Can't Say No, Sidney Biddle Barrows

“Chubby Hubby ice cream – I can't say no anymore.” - Sidney Biddle Barrows, the erstwhile Mayflower Madam, on the subject of her sole remaining vice.

Found in Loose Cannons: Devastating Dish from the World's Wildest Women, complied by Autumn Stephens, page 21.

Wrong, Majority, Leo Tolstoy, A Confession

“Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority share in it.” ― Leo Tolstoy, A Confession

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Carelessness, Incompetence, Deliberate, Department of Justice, Unsafe, Danielle Bensky

“I thought it was carelessness, and then I went to incompetence, and now it feels a bit deliberate. … I feel like the Department of Justice has really made us feel unsafe.” – Danielle Bensky, a former ballerina who met Jeffrey Epstein at 17, speaking to NBC News about the disclosure of victim-identifying information in the DOJ’s release of the Epstein files.

Found in Spring 2026 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 6.

Play Ostrich, Democracy, Liberty, Justice, Thurgood Marshall

“We cannot play ostrich. Democracy just cannot flourish amid fear. Liberty cannot bloom amid hate. Justice cannot take root amid rage. America must get to work. In the chill climate in which we live, we must go against the prevailing wind. We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust. We must dissent from a nation that has buried its head in the sand, waiting in vain for the needs of its poor, its elderly, and its sick to disappear and just blow away. We must dissent from a government that has left its young without jobs, education or hope. We must dissent from the poverty of vision and the absence of moral leadership. We must dissent because America can do better, because America has no choice but to do better.” ― Thurgood Marshall

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/331989.Thurgood_Marshall.

Life, Anguish, Defend It, Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

“Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it.” ― Mary Shelley, Frankenstein

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/11139.Mary_Wollstonecraft_Shelley.

Corruption, Regine, Extremists, Alexei Navalny

“When corruption is the very foundation of a regime, those who battle it are extremists.” ― Alexei Navalny, Patriot: A Memoir

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/7149583.Alexei_Navalny.

Self-Defense, Defending, Gloria Steinem

“The best thing about self-defense is knowing there is a self worth defending.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 20.

Want to Write, Create, Most Sublime Fool, Ray Bradbury

“If you want to write, if you want to create, you must be the most sublime fool that God ever turned out and sent rambling. You must write every single day of your life. You must read dreadful dumb books and glorious books, and let them wrestle in beautiful fights inside your head, vulgar one moment, brilliant the next. You must lurk in libraries and climb the stacks like ladders to sniff books like perfumes and wear books like hats upon your crazy heads. I wish you a wrestling match with your Creative Muse that will last a lifetime. I wish craziness and foolishness and madness upon you. May you live with hysteria, and out of it make fine stories — science fiction or otherwise. Which finally means, may you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days. And out of that love, remake a world.” ― Ray Bradbury

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1630.Ray_Bradbury.

Speak, Afraid, Silent, Audre Lorde

"When we speak we are afraid our words will not be heard or welcomed. But when we are silent, we are still afraid. So it is better to speak." - Audre Lorde

This is from Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audrelorde392663.html.

Child, Black, White, Goal Worth FIghting For, Thurgood Marshall

"A child born to a Black mother in a state like Mississippi... has exactly the same rights as a white baby born to the wealthiest person in the United States. It's not true, but I challenge anyone to say it is not a goal worth working for." - Thurgood Marshall

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/thurgood_marshall_135450.

Cautious, Careful People, Reform, Susan B. Anthony

“Cautious, careful people always casting about to preserve their reputations can never effect a reform.” - Susan B. Anthony

Found in Quotes for Nasty Women: Empowering Wisdom from Women Who Break the Rules, by Linda Picone, page 102.

Father, Ignorant, Learned, Mark Twain

“When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.” ― Mark Twain

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Tell the Truth, Weapon, Alexei Navalny

“We must do what they fear--tell the truth, spread the truth. This is the most power weapon against this regime of liars, thieves, and hypocrites. Everyone has this weapon. So make use of it.” ― Alexei Navalny, Patriot: A Memoir

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/7149583.Alexei_Navalny.

Nation of Sheep, Government of Wolves, Freedom, Edward R. Murrow

"A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves." - Edward R. Murrow

"We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home." - Edward R. Murrow

Both of these can be found at Goodreads, specifically at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/178884.Edward_R_Murrow.

Painful, Sudden Change, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein

“Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change.” ― Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Frankenstein

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/11139.Mary_Wollstonecraft_Shelley.

Country's Greatness, Retain Compassion, Thurgood Marshall

“The measure of a country's greatness is its ability to retain compassion in times of crisis.” ― Thurgood Marshall

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/331989.Thurgood_Marshall.

Can, Should, Will, Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

“You can, you should, and if you’re brave enough to start, you will.” ― Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

Found on Goodreads. Read more at https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/search?utf8=✓&q=Stephen+King&commit=Search

Leave Something Behind, Child, Book, Garden, Ray Bradbury

“Everyone must leave something behind when he dies, my grandfather said. A child or a book or a painting or a house or a wall built or a pair of shoes made. Or a garden planted. Something your hand touched some way so your soul has somewhere to go when you die, and when people look at that tree or that flower you planted, you're there.

"It doesn't matter what you do, he said, so long as you change something from the way it was before you touched it into something that's like you after you take your hands away. The difference between the man who just cuts lawns and a real gardener is in the touching, he said. The lawn-cutter might just as well not have been there at all; the gardener will be there a lifetime.” ― Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451

Found on GoodReads. Click here to see this and other Ray Bradbury quotes.

Oppressors, Understanding, Audre Lorde, Black Scholar

“Oppressors always expect the oppressed to extend to them the understanding so lacking in themselves.” - Audre Lorde, Black Scholar, May – June 1979.

Found in Contemporary Quotations in Black, compiled and edited by Anita King, page 141.

Require Many Words, Speak the Truth, Chief Joseph

“It does not require many words to speak the truth.” – Chief Joseph (1840-1904) was a leader of the Wal-lam-wat-kain (Wallowa) band of Nez Perce, a tribe from the interior Pacific Northwest.

Found at "15 Inspiring Quotes from Indigenous Peoples" at https://www.humanrightscareers.com/issues/inspiring-quotes-from-indigenous-peoples/.

Legitimate, Validate, Existence, Giving Away Her Power, Bell Hooks

“If any female feels she needs anything beyond herself to legitimate and validate her existence, she is already giving away her power.” - Bell Hooks

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 156.

Think, Question Authority, Timothy Leary

“Think for yourself. Question authority.” ― Timothy Leary

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/47718.Timothy_Leary.

Wanting Clean Drinking Water, Activist, Destroy Water, Terrorist, Winona LaDuke

"Someone needs to explain to me why wanting clean drinking water makes you an activist, and why proposing to destroy water with chemical warfare doesnt make a corporation a terrorist." - Winona LaDuke

Found on AZ Quotes and https://www.azquotes.com/quote/819146.

Busy Living, Busy Dying, Stephen King, Different Seasons

“Get busy living or get busy dying.” ― Stephen King, Different Seasons

Found on GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/3389.Stephen_King.

Individual, Pick Your Own Goals, Blind Follower, Thurgood Marshall

"Each of you, as an individual, must pick your own goals. Listen to others, but do not become a blind follower." - Thurgood Marshall

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/thurgood_marshall_821972.

Life, Short, Now, Audre Lorde

"Life is very short and what we have to do must be done in the now." - Audre Lorde

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audrelorde383487.html.

Journalist, Politics, Walter Cronkite

"A journalist covering politics, most of us are aware of the necessity to try to be sure we're unbiased in our reporting. That's one of the fundamentals of good journalism." - Walter Cronkite

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/walter_cronkite_804694

You Must Write, Lurk in Libraries, Remake a World, Ray Bradbury

“You must write every single day of your life... You must lurk in libraries and climb the stacks like ladders to sniff books like perfumes and wear books like hats upon your crazy heads... may you be in love every day for the next 20,000 days. And out of that love, remake a world.” ― Ray Bradbury

From GoodReads. Read more Ray Bradbury quotes here.

Problem, Consumption, Unsustainable, Winona LaDuke

“The essence of the problem is about consumption, recognizing that a society that consumes one-third of the world's resources is unsustainable. This level of consumption requires constant intervention into other people's lands. That's what's going on.” ― Winona LaDuke

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/107298.Winona_LaDuke.

Make a Living, Make a Life, Winston Churchill

"We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give." - Winston Churchill

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/winston_churchill_131192.

Wrong, Inequality, Injustice, Speak Out, Thurgood Marshall

"Where you see wrong or inequality or injustice, speak out, because this is your country. This is your democracy. Make it. Protect it. Pass it on." - Thurgood Marshall

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/thurgood_marshall_821973

Self-Esteem, Everything, Gloria Steinem

“Self-esteem isn't everything; it's just that there's nothing without it.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 20.

Feminization of Poverty, American Economy, Abby J. Leibman

“The feminization of poverty was not a glitch. It is, in fact, a long-standing and very deeply entrenched part of the American economy.” – Abby J. Leibman

Found in Fall 2025 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 27.

Born Ignorant, Work Hard, Remain Stupid, Benjamin Franklin

“We are all born ignorant, but one must work hard to remain stupid.” ― Benjamin Franklin

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/289513.Benjamin_Franklin.

Master's Tools, Master's House, Audre Lorde

"The master's tools will never dismantle the master's house." - Audre Lorde

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audrelorde357280.html

Almost Right Word, Lightning Bug, Lightning, Mark Twain, The Wit and Wisdom of Mark Twain: A Book of Quotations

“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is really a large matter. ’tis the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.” ― Mark Twain, The Wit and Wisdom of Mark Twain: A Book of Quotations

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Violence, Assault, Immigration, Problems, Loretta Ross

“[Women facing] domestic violence, sexual assault, financial violence are now also dealing with immigration violence, compounding their problems. … There’s so much harm being done, we almost have to invent new words to describe it.” – Loretta Ross

Found in Spring 2026 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 1.

Ginger Rogers, Fred Astaire, Backwards, High Heels, Faith Whittlesey

"Remember, Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but she did it backwards and in high heels." – Faith Whittlesey

Found on Quoteopia! at https://www.quoteopia.com/famous.php?quotesby=faithwhittlesey.

Cups, Being Filled, Let the Beautiful Stuff Out, Ray Bradbury

“We are cups, constantly and quietly being filled. The trick is, knowing how to tip ourselves over and let the beautiful stuff out.” ― Ray Bradbury

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1630.Ray_Bradbury.

Women, Equal With Men, Ambition, Timothy Leary

“Women who seek to be equal with men lack ambition.” ― Timothy Leary

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/47718.Timothy_Leary.

Silence, Protect You, Audre Lorde

"Your silence will not protect you." - Audre Lorde

Found at Brainy Quote. Read it at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audrelorde357292.html.

Die, Defending Our Rights, Sitting Bull

“If we must die, we die defending our rights.” – Sitting Bull (1831-1890), one of the most famous Indigenous leaders in history. Hunkpapa Lakota leader.

Found at "15 Inspiring Quotes from Indigenous Peoples" at https://www.humanrightscareers.com/issues/inspiring-quotes-from-indigenous-peoples/.

Whistles, Guns, Becca Good

“We had whistles. They had guns.” – Becca Good, wife of Renee Good, who was shot and killed by Immigration and Customs Enforecement agent Jonathan Ross in Minneapolis while supporting her immigrant neighbors.

Found in Spring 2026 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 6.

Success, Permanent, Principles, Walter Cronkite

“Success is more permanent when you achieve it without destroying your principles.” ― Walter Cronkite

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/30807.Walter_Cronkite>.

Laughter, Stays as Long as it Wants, Stephen King

"You can't deny laughter; when it comes, it plops down in your favorite chair and stays as long as it wants." - Stephen King

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/stephen_king_106358.

Drunk on Writing, Reality, Ray Bradbury, Zen in the Art of Writing

“You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you.” ― Ray Bradbury, Zen in the Art of Writing

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1630.Ray_Bradbury.

No Good Deed, Unpunished, Claire Booth Luce

“No good deed goes unpunished.” - Claire Boothe Luce

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 58.

Concentration, Wealth, Political Power, Accelerates the Cycle, Noam Chomsky

"Concentration of wealth yields concentration of political power. And concentration of political power gives rise to legislation that increases and accelerates the cycle." - Noam Chomsky

Found on Brainy Quote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/noam_chomsky_635835.

Can't Fight City Hall, Rumor, Audre Lorde

“That you can't fight City Hall is a rumor being circulated by City Hall.” - Audre Lorde

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 91.

Fight an Enemy, Outposts, Sally Kempton

“It is hard to fight an enemy who has outposts in your head.” - Sally Kempton

Found in The Quotable Woman, by Running Press, Editor, page 35.

No One, Your Worth, Pearl Bailey

“No one can figure out your worth but you.” - Pearl Bailey

Found in Quotes for Nasty Women: Empowering Wisdom from Women Who Break the Rules, by Linda Picone, page 35.

A Little Freedom, All Free, Not Free, Walter Cronkite

"There is no such thing as a little freedom. Either you are all free, or you are not free." - Walter Cronkite

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/walter_cronkite_124506.

Man, Above the Law, Below It, Theodore Roosevelt

“No man is above the law and no man below it.” - Theodore Roosevelt

Found in Great Quotes from Great Leaders, by Peggy Anderson, page 10.

Burn Books, Destroy a Culture, Stop Reading, Ray Bradbury

“You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them.” ― Ray Bradbury

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/search?utf8=✓&q=ray+bradbury&commit=Search.

Worth Possessing, Be Quite Possessed, Sara Teasdale

“No one worth possessing/Can be quite possessed.” - Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Sara Teasdale

Found in Wild Words from Wild Women: An Unbridled Collection of Candid Observations & Extremely Opinionated Bon Mots, Compiled by Autumn Stephens, page 142.

Cheap Labor, Never Cheap, Person Who Performs It, Audre Lorde

“Cheap labor is never cheap for the person who performs it.” - Audre Lorde, Commencement address, Oberlin College, May 29, 1989

Found in Contemporary Quotations in Black, compiled and edited by Anita King, page 142.

Find Yourself, Face the Truth, Pearl Bailey

“You never find yourself until you face the truth.” - Pearl Bailey

Found in The Quotable Woman, by Running Press, Editor, page 37.

Don't Give Up, Love, Inspiration, Wrong, Ella Fitgerald

"Just don't give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don't think you can go wrong." — Ella Fitzgerald, African-American Jazz singer

Found on Beliefnet.com at http://www.beliefnet.com/inspiration/2010/01/inspiring-quotes-from-great-women-in-history.aspx?p=12.

Not Feel Hopeless, Do Something, Barack Obama

“The best way to not feel hopeless is to get up and do something. Don’t wait for good things to happen to you. If you go out and make some good things happen, you will fill the world with hope, you will fill yourself with hope.” ― Barack Obama

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/6356.Barack_Obama.

Tell Me, Teach Me, Involve Me, Benjamin Franklin

“Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.” ― Benjamin Franklin

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/289513.Benjamin_Franklin.

Secret, Success, Give Up, Wilma Mankiller

“The secret of our success is that we never, never give up.” – Wilma Mankiller (1945-2010) was a Native American activist, community organizer, and social worker. She was the first woman elected as Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation

Found at "15 Inspiring Quotes from Indigenous Peoples" at https://www.humanrightscareers.com/issues/inspiring-quotes-from-indigenous-peoples/.

If It's Wrong, They Do It, We Do It, Noam Chomsky

“If it's wrong when they do it, it's wrong when we do it.” ― Noam Chomsky

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Freedom of the Press, Democracy, Walter Cronkite

“Freedom of the press is not just important to democracy, it is democracy.” ― Walter Cronkite

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/30807.Walter_Cronkite>.

Monsters, Ghosts, Win, Stephen King

“Monsters are real, and ghosts are real, too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.” - Stephen King

No One, This Office, Dwight D. Eisenhower

“No one should ever sit in this office over 70 years old, and that I know.” - Dwight D. Eisenhower

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/dwight_d_eisenhower_112037.N

Terrorize, Whole Nation, Edward R. Murrow

"No one can terrorize a whole nation, unless we are all his accomplices." - Edward R. Murrow

Can be found at Goodreads or by clicking here.

Being a Bitch, Hold On To, Stephen King, Dolores Claiborne

“Sometimes being a bitch is all a woman's got to hold on to.” ― Stephen King, Dolores Claiborne

Found on GoodReads. Read more here.

Darkest Places, Neutrality, Moral Crisis, Dante Alighieri

"The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis." - Dante Alighieri

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/dante_alighieri_109737.

Seeking Truth, Both Sides, Walter Cronkite

“In seeking truth you have to get both sides of a story.”― Walter Cronkite

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/30807.Walter_Cronkite>.

Majority, Reform, Pause, Reflect, Mark Twain

“Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to reform (or pause and reflect).” ― Mark Twain

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Late for Dinner, Affair, Dead, Jessica Tandy

“When he's late for dinner, I know he's either having an affair or is lying dead in the street. I always hope it's the street.” - Jessica Tandy, married to fellow actor Hume Cronyn for nearly on-half century, on the subject of drivng Miss Daisy completely bonkers.

Found in Wild Words from Wild Women: An Unbridled Collection of Candid Observations & Extremely Opinionated Bon Mots, Compiled by Autumn Stephens, page 128.

Delay, Time, Benjamin Franklin

“You may delay, but time will not.” ― Benjamin Franklin

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/289513.Benjamin_Franklin.

Hand, Blood, Pain, Standing Bear

“That hand is not the color of yours, but if I prick it, the blood will flow, and I shall feel pain. The blood is of the same color as yours. God made me, and I am a Man.” – Standing Bear (1829-1908) was the leader of a small group of Poncha people

Found at "15 Inspiring Quotes from Indigenous Peoples" at https://www.humanrightscareers.com/issues/inspiring-quotes-from-indigenous-peoples/.

Love What You Do, Matters, Katharine Graham

“To love what you do and feel that it matters – how could anything be more fun?” - Katharine Graham, publisher of the Washington Post.

Found in Wild Words from Wild Women: An Unbridled Collection of Candid Observations & Extremely Opinionated Bon Mots, Compiled by Autumn Stephens, page 165.

Cost, Libraries, Cheap, Ignorant Nation, Walter Cronkite

“Whatever the cost of our libraries, the price is cheap compared to that of an ignorant nation.” ― Walter Cronkite

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/30807.Walter_Cronkite>.

Councils of Government, Guard, Unwarranted Influence, Dwight D. Eisenhower

“In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.” ― Dwight D. Eisenhower

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/23920.Dwight_D_Eisenhower.

Criticism of the President, Right or Wrong, Unpatriotic, Servile, Morally Treasonable, Theodore Roosevelt

“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.” ― Theodore Roosevelt

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/44567.Theodore_Roosevelt.

Truth, Proper, Beautiful, Frederick Douglass

“Truth is proper and beautiful at all times and in all places.” - Frederick Douglass

Found in The Sun, May 2017, pg.48, “Sunbeams”

Essential Liberty, Temporary Safety, Benjamin Franklin

“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” ― Benjamin Franklin, Memoirs of the life & writings of Benjamin Franklin

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/289513.Benjamin_Franklin.

Show Respect, Grovel to None, Tecumseh

“Show respect to all people, but grovel to none.” – Tecumseh (1768-1813) was a Shawnee warrior and chief

Found at "15 Inspiring Quotes from Indigenous Peoples" at https://www.humanrightscareers.com/issues/inspiring-quotes-from-indigenous-peoples/.

Perfection, Content, Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

“If you look for perfection, you'll never be content.” ― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Joanna Come Lately, Bella Abzug

“I'm no Joanna come lately, believe me, I've been here all along – outside.” - Bella Abzug, on being elected to U.S. House of Representatives in 1971; three-term U.S. Congresswoman from New York, known both for the unconventional contents of her cranium and her penchant for placing ladylike chapeaux on it.

Found in Wild Words from Wild Women: An Unbridled Collection of Candid Observations & Extremely Opinionated Bon Mots, Compiled by Autumn Stephens, page 55.

Women, Control, Skin In, Skin Out, Gloria Steinem

“If women can't control our lives from the skin in, we can't control our lives from the skin out.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 36.

Saying to Myself, Live, Say, Paint, Georgia O'Keeffe

“One day I found myself saying to myself, 'I can't live where I want to. I can't even say what I want to!' I decided I was a very stupid fool not to at least paint as I wanted to.” - Georgia O'Keeffe, doyenne of the painted desert. Convent-educated O'Keeffe also didn't enjoy hearing about the sexual symbolism of her work, insisting that any putative crotch imagery was nothing but a crock.

Found in Wild Words from Wild Women: An Unbridled Collection of Candid Observations & Extremely Opinionated Bon Mots, Compiled by Autumn Stephens, page 161.

Marriage, Luxury, Necessity, Susan B. Anthony

"Marriage, to women as to men, must be a luxury, not a necessity; an incident of life, not all of it." - Susan B. Anthony

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/susan_b_anthony_765253.

Farming, Easy, Pencil, Corn Field, Dwight D. Eisenhower

“Farming looks mighty easy when your plow is a pencil and you're a thousand miles from the corn field.” - Dwight D. Eisenhower

Found on BrainyQuote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/dwight_d_eisenhower_112033.

Acting, Minor of Gifts, Shirley Temple, Katharine Hepburn

“Acting is the most minor of gifts. After all, Shirley Temple could do it when she was four.” - Katharine Hepburn

Found in Treasury of Women's Quotations, by Carolyn Warner, page 31.

Good Friends, Books, Conscience, Mark Twain

“Good friends, good books, and a sleepy conscience: this is the ideal life.” ― Mark Twain

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Mankind, Peace, Gift, Elie Wiesel

"Mankind must remember that peace is not God's gift to his creatures; peace is our gift to each other." - Elie Wiesel

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/eliewiesel112799.html.

Grow Up, Grow Old, Give Up Something, Ignorance, Maya Angelou

“Most people don't really grow up. What they do is grow old, they grow tiresome even and self-righteous maybe, for it is hard to grow. Because it means they must give up something. Usually their ignorance.” - Maya Angelou, in New York Newsday, Jan. 12, 1993

Found in Contemporary Quotations in Black, compiled and edited by Anita King, page 11.

Master's Tools, Master's House, Audre Lorde

"The master's tools will never dismantle the master's house." - Audre Lorde

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/audrelorde357280.html

Deep Trouble, Serving Others, Courage, Struggle, Cornel West

“The country is in deep trouble. We've forgotten that a rich life consists fundamentally of serving others, trying to leave the world a little better than you found it. We need the courage to question the powers that be, the courage to be impatient with evil and patient with people, the courage to fight for social justice. In many instances we will be stepping out on nothing, and just hoping to land on something. But that's the struggle. To live is to wrestle with despair, yet never allow despair to have the last word.” ― Cornel West

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/6176.Cornel_West.

Goebbels, Stalin, Free Speech, Noam Chomsky

“Goebbels was in favor of free speech for views he liked. So was Stalin. If you’re really in favor of free speech, then you’re in favor of freedom of speech for precisely the views you despise. Otherwise, you’re not in favor of free speech.” ― Noam Chomsky

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Powerful Warriors, Patience, Time, Leo Tolstoy

“The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.” ― Leo Tolstoy

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Do Something About That, Somebody, Lily Tomlin

“I always wondered why somebody doesn't do something about that. Then I realized that I was somebody.” - Lily Tomlin

Found in Quotes for Nasty Women: Empowering Wisdom from Women Who Break the Rules, by Linda Picone, page 68.

Cooking, Creative, Imaginative, Julia Child

“Cooking is just as creative and imaginative an activity as drawing, or wood carving, or music. And cooking draws upon your every talent – science, mathematics, energy, history, experience – and the more experience you have the less likely are your experiments to end in drivel and disaster. The more you know, the more you can create.” - Julia Child

Found in The Last Word: A Treasury of Women's Quotes, by Carolyn Warner, page 30.

Oppressors, Oppressed, Understanding, Audre Lorde, Black Scholar

“Oppressors always expect the oppressed to extend to them the understanding so lacking in themselves.” - Audre Lorde, Black Scholar, May – June 1979.

Found in Contemporary Quotations in Black, compiled and edited by Anita King, page 141.

Change, Waiting For, Barack Obama

“We are the change we have been waiting for.” ― Barack Obama

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/6356.Barack_Obama.

Freedom, Huge Corporations, Stalinism, Noam Chomsky

“It’s ridiculous to talk about freedom in a society dominated by huge corporations. What kind of freedom is there inside a corporation? They’re totalitarian institutions - you take orders from above and maybe give them to people below you. There’s about as much freedom as under Stalinism.” ― Noam Chomsky

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Better, Lies, Deceit, Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

“Anything is better than lies and deceit!” ― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Substitute, Delete, Writing, Mark Twain

“Substitute 'damn' every time you're inclined to write 'very;' your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.” ― Mark Twain

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Wise, Brave Man, Tracks of History, Dwight D. Eisenhower

“Neither a wise nor a brave man lies down on the tracks of history to wait for the train of the future to run over him.” ― Dwight D. Eisenhower

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/23920.Dwight_D_Eisenhower.

Empathy, Hope, Cornel West

“Empathy is not simply a matter of trying to imagine what others are going through, but having the will to muster enough courage to do something about it. In a way, empathy is predicated upon hope.” ― Cornel West

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/6176.Cornel_West.

Women, Depend upon the Protection, Susan B. Anthony

"Woman must not depend upon the protection of man, but must be taught to protect herself." - Susan B. Anthony, speech in San Francisco, Jul. 1871

Found on Notable Quotes at http://www.notable-quotes.com/a/anthony_susan_b.html.

Joy and Pain, Friendship, Loved Unselfishly, Living, Zora Neale Hurston

“I have known the joy and pain of friendship. I have served and been served. I have made some good enemies for which I am not a bit sorry. I have loved unselfishly, and I have fondled hatred with the red-hot tongs of Hell. That's living.” ― Zora Neale Hurston

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/15151.Zora_Neale_Hurston.

Stop, Cease Your Work, Look Around, Leo Tolstoy

“In the name of God, stop a moment, cease your work, look around you.” ― Leo Tolstoy

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Conventional Doctrines, Neptune, Noam Chomsky, Propaganda and the Public Mind

“Either you repeat the same conventional doctrines that everybody else is saying,... [o]r else you say something which in fact is true, and it will sound like it's from Neptune.” ― Noam Chomsky, Propaganda and the Public Mind

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Democracy, Racism, Feminist, Gloria Steinem

“There can be no true democracy with racism or without feminism.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 25.

Lie, Travel, Truth, Mark Twain

“A lie can travel half way around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes.” ― Mark Twain

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Earnest, Willing, World's Estimation, Susan B. Anthony

“Those who are really in earnest must be willing to be anything or nothing in the world's estimation.” - Susan B. Anthony, the formidable founding mother of 19th-century American feminism.

Found in Loose Cannons: Devastating Dish from the World's Wildest Women, complied by Autumn Stephens, page 66.

Being a Bitch, Hold On To, Stephen King

“Sometimes being a bitch is all a woman's got to hold on to.” ― Stephen King, Dolores Claiborne

Found on GoodReads. Read more here.

Freedom, Individual, Real Leadership, Dwight Eisenhower

"The freedom of the individual and his willingness to follow real leadership are at the core of America's strength." - Dwight Eisenhower, Address at Norwich University, Northfield, Vermont, 6/9/46

Found in Eisenhower library at https://www.eisenhowerlibrary.gov/eisenhowers/quotes.

Sorrow's Kitchen, Pots, Wrapped in Rainbows, Zora Neal Hurston

"I have been in Sorrow's kitchen and licked out all the pots. Then I have stood on the peaky mountain wrapped in rainbows, with a harp and sword in my hands." - Zora Neale Hurston

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/zora_neale_hurston_399481.

Love, Union, Rules, Bell Hooks, Tricycle: The Buddhist Review

“In real love, real union, or communion there are now rules.” - bell hooks, Tricycle: The Buddhist Review, Fall 1992

Found in Contemporary Quotations in Black, compiled and edited by Anita King, page 97.

Loving Strongly, Great Sorrow, Leo Tolstoy

“Only people who are capable of loving strongly can also suffer great sorrow, but this same necessity of loving serves to counteract their grief and heals them.” ― Leo Tolstoy

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Dependent Children, Welfare, Gloria Steinem

“If they have dependent children, many women are one man away from welfare.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 36.

Does Not Read, Cannot Read, Mark Twain

“The man who does not read has no advantage over the man who cannot read.” ― Mark Twain

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Obligation, Meaning to Life, Elie Wiesel

"Our obligation is to give meaning to life and in doing so to overcome the passive, indifferent life." - Elie Wiesel

Found at Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/eliewiesel386793.html.

Get Busy, Stephen King

“Get busy living or get busy dying.” ― Stephen King, Different Seasons

Found on GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/3389.Stephen_King.

Enemy, Patriarchy, Toni Morrison

“The enemy is not men. The enemy is the concept of patriarchy, the concept of patriarchy as the way to run the world or do things.” – Toni Morrison

Found in the Summer 2025 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 6o.

Talk, Listen, Gloria Steinem

“Women have to learn how to talk as much as we listen. Men have to learn how to listen as much as they talk.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 27.

System of Oppression, Institutionalized, Florynce Kennedy

"When a system of oppression has become institutionalized it is unnecessary for individuals to be oppressive." - Florynce Kennedy

Found on Brainyquote at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/florynce_kennedy_397337.

Language, Complain, Jane Wagner, Lily Tomlin

“I personally think we developed language because of our deep inner need to complain.” - Writer Jane Wagner, the wry collaborative mind behind some of Lily Tomlin's best lines.

Found in Wild Words from Wild Women: An Unbridled Collection of Candid Observations & Extremely Opinionated Bon Mots, Compiled by Autumn Stephens, page 15.

Tell the Truth, Remember, Mark Twain

“If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything.” ― Mark Twain

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Perfection, Content, Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

“If you look for perfection, you'll never be content.” ― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

Found on Goodreads athttps://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Rainbow, Cloud, Maya Angelo

"Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud." - Maya Angelo

Found on Brainy Quote at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/m/mayaangelo578763.html.

Memory, Culture, Civiliaztion, Elie Wiesel

"Without memory, there is no culture. Without memory, there would be no civilization, no society, no future." - Elie Wiesel

Found at Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/e/eliewiesel451199.html.

Popular Culture, Helpless, Noam Chomsky

“All over the place, from the popular culture to the propaganda system, there is constant pressure to make people feel that they are helpless, that the only role they can have is to ratify decisions and to consume.” ― Noam Chomsky

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Love, Sea, Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God

“Love is like the sea. It's a moving thing, but still and all, it takes its shape from the shore it meets, and it's different with every shore.” ― Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/15151.Zora_Neale_Hurston.

Schooling, Education, Mark Twain

“I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” ― Mark Twain

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Failure, Impossible, Susan B. Anthony

“Failure is impossible.” - Susan B. Anthony, the formidable founding mother of 19th-century American feminism.

Found in Loose Cannons: Devastating Dish from the World's Wildest Women, complied by Autumn Stephens, page 66.

Happy Families, Unhappy Family, Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

“All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” ― Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina

Found on Goodreads at,a href=https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy>https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Plain Women, Beautiful Ones, Katharine Hepburn

“Plain women know more about men than beautiful ones do.” - Katharine Hepburn.”

Found in The Quotable Woman, by Running Press, Editor, page 102.

Supreme Quality, Leadership, Integrity, Dwight David Eisenhower

“The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office.” ― Dwight David Eisenhower

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/23920.Dwight_D_Eisenhower.

Worse than Failing, What If, Gloria Steinem

“The only thing worse than failing is not having tried. You will walk around forever thinking, What if?” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 75.

Optimism, Better Future, Noam Chomsky

“Optimism is a strategy for making a better future. Because unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so.” ― Noam Chomsky

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Say Things, Color, Shapes, Words, Georgia O'Keeffe

“I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way – things I had no words for.” - Georgia O'Keeffe

Found at Speaking of Art: Colorful Quotes by Famous Painters, edited by Bob Raczka, page 19.

Show it, Hide it, Zora Neal Hurston

"Those that don't got it, can't show it. Those that got it, can't hide it." - Zora Neale Hurston

Found at BrainyQuote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/zora_neale_hurston_384229.

Belittle, Ambitions, Become Great, Mark Twain

“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” ― Mark Twain

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/1244.Mark_Twain.

Wrong, Majority, Leo Tolstoy, A Confession

“Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority share in it.” ― Leo Tolstoy, A Confession

Found on Goodreads at,a href=https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy>https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

Mother, Air-Traffic Controllers, Lisa Alther

“Any mother could perform the jobs of several air-traffic controllers with ease.” - Lisa Alther

Found in The Quotable Woman, by Running Press, Editor, page 69.

Prolonged Slavery, Woman, Susan B. Anthony, History of Woman Suffrage

"The prolonged slavery of woman is the darkest page in human history." - Susan B. Anthony, introduction, History of Woman Suffrage

Found on Notable Quotes at http://www.notable-quotes.com/a/anthony_susan_b.html.

Leadership, Taking Responsibility, Dwight D. Eisenhower

“Leadership consists of nothing but taking responsibility for everything that goes wrong and giving your subordinates credit for everything that goes well.” ― Dwight D. Eisenhower

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/23920.Dwight_D_Eisenhower.

Involved in Art, Good, Lucky, Katharine Hepburn

“I think most of the people involved in any art always secretly wonder whether they are really there because they're good – or because they're lucky.” - Katharine Hepburn

Found in The Last Word: A Treasury of Women's Quotes, by Carolyn Warner, page 5.

Broom of Anger, Beast of Fear, Zora Neale Hurston

"Grab the broom of anger and drive off the beast of fear." - Zora Neale Hurston

From BrainyQuote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/zora_neale_hurston_158891.

Civil Rights, Women's Rights, Equality, Justice Sonia Stotmayor

“When the civil rights and women’s rights movements sought equality in public life, some public establishments refused. Some even claimed, based on sincere religious beliefs, constitutional rights to discriminate. The brave Justices who once sat on this Court decisively rejected those claims.” - Justice Sonia Sotomayor, dissenting to the Supreme Court’s decision in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, which held that business owners have the right under the First Amendment to refuse service to LGVTQ+ people

Found in Ms. Magazine, Fall 2023, page 6.

Despair, Overwhelmed, Fight, Kamala Harris

“We must not despair. We must not be overwhelmed or throw up our hands. It is time to roll up our sleeves and fight for who we are.” - Sen.-Elect Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), now former V.P.

From Ms. Magazine special election issue, Fall, 2016 page 11.

Note: V.P. Kamal Harris was the Senator-Elect when the above quote was published in Ms. Magazine.

World Right for Love, Tillie Olsen, Silences

“It has never yet been a world right for love, for those we love, for ourselves, for flowered human life.” ― Tillie Olsen, Silences

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/89863.Tillie_Olsen.

Associate, Learn, Dwight D. Eisenhower

“Always try to associate yourself with and learn as much as you can from those who know more than you do, who do better than you, who see more clearly than you.” ― Dwight D. Eisenhower, At Ease: Stories I Tell to Friends

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/23920.Dwight_D_Eisenhower.

Changing the World, Changing Himself, Leo Tolstoy

“Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.” - Leo Tolstoy

Found on Goodreads at,a href=https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy>https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/128382.Leo_Tolstoy.

People with Power, Violence, Noam Chomsky

“See, people with power understand exactly one thing: violence.” ― Noam Chomsky

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/2476.Noam_Chomsky.

Life is to be Lived, Katharine Hepburn

“Life is to be lived. If you have to support yourself, you had bloody well better find some way that is going to be interesting. And you don't do that by sitting around wondering about yourself.” - Katharine Hepburn

Found in The Quotable Woman, by Running Press, Editor, page 22.

Life, Too Short, Charlotte Bronte

“Life appears to me too short to be spent in nursing animosity or registering wrong.” - Charlotte Bronte

Found in Treasury of Women's Quotations, by Carolyn Warner, page 37.

People, Comfortable, St. Paul, Minn., City Council President Mitra Jalali

“Let’s just say, a whole lot of people who are comfortable with majority male, majority white institutions for nearly 170 years of city history are suddenly sharply concerned about representation. My thoughts and prayers are with them in this challenging time.” - St. Paul, Minn., City Council President Mitra Jalali, speaking at an event celebrating the inauguration of the new, all-women City Council (all seven members are younger than 40; six are women of color).

Found in Ms. Magazine, Spring 2024, page 6.

Writing, Communication, Rebecca West

"Writing has nothing to do with communication between person and person, only with communication between different parts of a person's mind." - Rebecca West

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/rebecca_west_162289.

Path of Least Resistance, Troublesome Work, John Dewey

“The path of least resistance and least trouble is a mental rut already made. It requires troublesome work to undertake the alteration of old beliefs.” ― John Dewey

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/42738.John_Dewey.

I love Myself When I am Laughing, Mean and Impressive, Zora Neale Hurston

“I love myself when I am laughing. . . and then again when I am looking mean and impressive.” ― Zora Neale Hurston, I Love Myself When I Am Laughing... And Then Again: A Zora Neale Hurston Reader

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/15151.Zora_Neale_Hurston.

Avoid the Impulse, Live Only for Today, Dwight D. Eisenhower

“As we peer into society's future, we -- you and I, and our government -- must avoid the impulse to live only for today, plundering for our own ease and convenience the precious resources of tomorrow. We cannot mortgage the material assets of our grandchildren without risking the loss also of their political and spiritual heritage. We want democracy to survive for all generations to come, not to become the insolvent phantom of tomorrow.” ― Dwight D. Eisenhower

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/23920.Dwight_D_Eisenhower.

Right or Left, Right or Wrong, Moral Moment, Sen. Cory Booker

“This is not right or left. It is right or wrong. This is not a partisan moment. It is a moral moment. Where do you stand?” - Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), in a record-breaking speech on the Senate floor; for 25 hours and 4 minutes he spoke almost nonstop about the threats to democracy, immigrants, the social safety net, healthcare, the economy and more.

Found in the Summer 2025 issue of Ms. Magazine, page 6.

Values, Spend, Gloria Steinem

“You can tell what your values are by looking at how you spend your extra money.” - Gloria Steinem

Found in The Truth Will Set You Free, But First It Will Piss You Off: Thoughts on Life, Love, and Rebellion, by Gloria Steinem, page 72.

Words, Silence, Martin Luther King, Jr.

"In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends." - Martin Luther King, Jr.

From http://www.inc.com/marla-tabaka/31-martin-luther-king-jr-quotes-to-inspire-greatness-in-you.html.

More Children, Car Windows, Erma Bombeck

“Never have more children than you have car windows.” - Erma Bombeck

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 87.

Racism, Violence, Gloria Steinem

"The same way that racism is a white person's problem, violence against women is a men's problem." - Gloria Steinem

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/g/gloriastei690680.html.

Self-Educated Kind of Guy, Read, David Bowie

“I'm a real self-educated kind of guy. I read voraciously. Every book I ever bought, I have. I can't throw it away. It's physically impossible to leave my hand! Some of them are in warehouses. I've got a library that I keep the ones I really really like. I look around my library some nights and I do these terrible things to myself--I count up the books and think, how long I might have to live and think, 'F@#%k, I can't read two-thirds of these books.' It overwhelms me with sadness." - David Bowie, quoted in the Daily Beast in a 2002 interview with Bob Guccione, Jr.”

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/10360.David_Bowie.

Discriminated Against, Angry, Zora Neale Hurston

"Sometimes, I feel discriminated against, but it does not make me angry. It merely astonishes me. How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It's beyond me." - Zora Neale Hurston

Found on Brainy Quote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/zora_neale_hurston_132700.

One Believes Things, Aldous Huxley, Brave New World

“One believes things because one has been conditioned to believe them.” ― Aldous Huxley, Brave New World

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/3487.Aldous_Huxley.

Whole Damn World, Scared, John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men

“Maybe ever’body in the whole damn world is scared of each other.” ― John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/585.John_Steinbeck.

Something to Say, Having to say Something, John Dewey

“There's all the difference in the world between having something to say, and having to say something.” ― John Dewey

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/42738.John_Dewey.

Who's Who, What's That, Phyllis Diller

“I never made Who's Who but I'm featured in What's That.” - Phyllis Diller

Found in Women's Lip: Outrageous, Irreverent and Just Plain Hilarious Quotes, edited by Roz Warren, page 9.

Battle, Plans, Planning, Dwight D. Eisenhower

“In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”― Dwight D. Eisenhower

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/23920.Dwight_D_Eisenhower.

Tomorrow, David Bowie

“Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming.” ― David Bowie

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/10360.David_Bowie.

Integrity, Lie, Solzhenitsyn

“You can resolve to live your life with integrity. Let your credo be this: Let the lie come into the world, let it even triumph. But not through me.” ― Alexander Solzhenitsyn

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/19771050.Aleksandr_Solzhenitsyn.

On Recond Now, Films, Witnesses, Dwight D. Eisenhower

“Get it all on record now - get the films - get the witnesses - because somewhere down the road of history some bastard will get up and say that this never happened.” ― Dwight D. Eisenhower

Found on Goodreads at https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/23920.Dwight_D_Eisenhower.

Research, Curiosity, Zora Neale Hurston

"Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose." - Zora Neale Hurston

From BrainyQuote. Read more at: https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/zora_neale_hurston_132635.