We call ourselves public servants but I’ll tell you this: we as public servants must set an example for the rest of the nation. It is hypocritical for the public official to admonish and exhort the people to uphold the common good.
BARBARA JORDANHow do we create a harmonious society out of so many kinds of people? The key is tolerance — the one value that is indispensable in creating community.
More Barbara Jordan Quotes
-
-
Let there be no illusions about the difficulty of forming this kind of a national community. It’s tough, difficult, not easy. But a spirit of harmony will survive in America only if each of us remembers that we share a common destiny.
BARBARA JORDAN -
There is no obstacle in the path of young people who are poor or members of minority groups that hard work and preparation cannot cure.
BARBARA JORDAN -
“We, the people.” It is a very elegant beginning. But when that document was completed on the 17th of September in 1787, I was not included in that “We, the people.”
BARBARA JORDAN -
How do we create a harmonious society out of so many kinds of people? The key is tolerance — the one value that is indispensable in creating community.
BARBARA JORDAN -
I never intended to be a run-of-the-mill person.
BARBARA JORDAN -
But this is the great danger America faces. That we will cease to be one nation and become instead a collection of interest groups: city against suburb, region against region, individual against individual. Each seeking to satisfy private wants.
BARBARA JORDAN -
We can certainly defuse the intensity of the anti-immigrant feeling if we can bring some reality to the discussion by showing that they are not using that many resources.
BARBARA JORDAN -
We believe that the people are the source of all governmental power; that the authority of the people is to be extended, not restricted.
BARBARA JORDAN -
We want to be in control of our lives. Whether we are jungle fighters, craftsmen, company men, gamesmen, we want to be in control. And when the government erodes that control, we are not comfortable.
BARBARA JORDAN -
A nation is formed by the willingness of each of us to share in the responsibility for upholding the common good.
BARBARA JORDAN -
I live a day at a time. Each day I look for a kernel of excitement. In the morning, I say: ‘What is my exciting thing for today?’ Then, I do the day. Don’t ask me about tomorrow.
BARBARA JORDAN -
Let us heed the voice of the people and recognize their common sense. If we do not, we not only blaspheme our political heritage, we ignore the common ties that bind all Americans.
BARBARA JORDAN -
Credibility in immigration policy can be summed up in one sentence: Those who should get in, get in; those who should be kept out, are kept out; and those who should not be here will be required to leave.
BARBARA JORDAN -
A spirit of harmony can only survive if each of us remembers, when bitterness and self-interest seem to prevail, that we share a common destiny.
BARBARA JORDAN -
If you are dissatisfied with they way things are, then you have got to resolve to change them.
BARBARA JORDAN