“From the depth of need and despair, people can work together, can organize themselves to solve their own problems and fill their own needs with dignity and strength.”

History will judge societies and governments – and their institutions – not by how big they are or how well they serve the rich and the powerful, but by how effectively they respond to the needs of the poor and the helpless.

Talk is cheap. It is the way we organize and use our lives everyday that tells what we believe in.

We must understand that the highest form of freedom carries with it the greatest measure of discipline.

Violence just hurts those who are already hurt. Instead of exposing the brutality of the oppressor, it justifies it.

I am an organizer, not a union leader. A good organizer has to work hard and long. There are no shortcuts. You just keep talking to people, working with them, sharing, exchanging and they come along.

What I do shows people what kind of person I am.

When workers fall back on violence, they are lost. Oh, they might win some of their demands and might end a strike a little earlier, but they give up their imagination, their creativity, their will to work hard and to suffer for what they believe is right.

A symbol is an important thing. That is why we chose an Aztec eagle. It gives pride. When people see it they know it means dignity.

In 1968, I became a vegetarian after realizing that animals feel afraid, cold, hungry, and unhappy like we do.

True wealth is not measured in money or status or power. It is measured in the legacy we leave behind for those we love and those we inspire.

We need to help students and parents cherish and preserve the ethnic and cultural diversity that nourishes and strengthens this community – and this nation.

If we are full of hatred, we can’t really do our work. Hatred saps all that strength and energy we need to plan.

When a man or woman, young, or old, takes a place on the picket line for even a day or two, he will never be the same again.

In some cases non-violence requires more militancy than violence.

I became a vegetarian after realizing that animals feel afraid, cold, hungry and unhappy like we do. I feel very deeply about vegetarianism and the animal kingdom.

Being of service is not enough. You must become a servant of the people. When you do, you can demand their commitment in return.

God will never adjust His agenda to fit ours. He will not speed up His pace to catch up with ours; we need to slow our pace in order to recover our walk with Him. God will not scream and shout over the noisy clamor; He expects us to seek quietness, where His still small voice can be heard again.

I am tired of not writing to you about how powerful it is, when you don’t need to feel beautiful to know that you are.

The biggest thing that limits India’s growth is democracy, but it is needed. We cannot overrule it.

Before anyone else, women need to accept that neither does life stop, nor does it change for those few days in a month.

The earth does not need new continents, but new men.

What wounded veteran’s don’t need is sympathy. They need to be treated like the men they are: equals, heroes, and people who still have tremendous value for society.

You said I was weak. You said I couldn’t do it. Thank you. You gave me everything I needed to prove you wrong.

Faith is realizing that you always get what you need.