John Lewis Quotes

Quotes about:

• If you see something that is not right, not fair, not just, you have a moral obligation to do something about it.

  John Lewis

  Moral, Obligation, Fairs

  "In Miami MLK Speech, Civil Rights Icon John Lewis Defiant In Feud With Trump" by Tim Padgett, wlrn.org. January 16, 2017.

  436 Copy quote

• You cannot be afraid to speak up and speak out for what you believe. You have to have courage, raw courage.

  John Lewis

  Believe, Speaks Out, Speak

  Twitter post from Jul 16, 2014

  291 Copy quote

• Our struggle is a struggle to redeem the soul of America. It's not a struggle that lasts for a few days, a few weeks, a few months, or a few years. It is the struggle of a lifetime, more than one lifetime.

  John Lewis

  Struggle, Years, America

  "John Lewis marches on: “Our struggle is a struggle to redeem the soul of America”". Interview with Philip Eil, www.salon.com. August 9, 2016.

  245 Copy quote

• Young people can understand, and must understand, that we had success, we had failures, but we never gave up. We never gave in. We never became bitter. We didn't hate. We continued to press on. And that's what we're saying: There are some ups, there are some downs, and when you're not down, you must have the capacity and the ability to get up and keep going.

  John Lewis

  Hate, People, Bitter

  "The Long March of John Lewis". Interview with Jamil Smith, www.mtv.com. August 5, 2016.

  214 Copy quote

• We may not have chosen the time, but the time has chosen us.

  John Lewis

  May, Chosen

  Twitter post from Jul 11, 2016

  190 Copy quote

• I say from time to time that the vote is precious. It's almost sacred. It is the most powerful nonviolent tool or instrument that we have in a democratic society. And we must use it.

  John Lewis

  Powerful, Tools, Use

  "The Long March Of John Lewis". Interview with Jamil Smith, www.mtv.com. August 5, 2016.

  132 Copy quote

• I met Rosa Parks when I was 17. I met Dr. [Martin Luther] King when I was 18. These two individuals inspired me to find a way to get in the way, to get in trouble. So I got in good trouble, necessary trouble.

  John Lewis

  Kings, Two, Drs

  "John Lewis marches on: "Our struggle is a struggle to redeem the soul of America"". Interview with Philip Eil, www.salon.com. August 8, 2016.

  164 Copy quote

• It is my hope that people today will see that, in another time, in another period, when we saw the need for people to speak up, to organize, to mobilize, and to do something about injustice, we came together.

  John Lewis

  People, Together, Needs

  "The Long March Of John Lewis". Interview with Jamil Smith, www.mtv.com. August 5, 2016.

  150 Copy quote

• If you're not hopeful and optimistic, then you just give up. You have to take that long hard look and just believe that if your consistent, you will succeed

  John Lewis

  Giving Up, Believe, Optimistic

  141 Copy quote

• I thought I was going to die a few times. On the Freedom Ride in the year 1961, when I was beaten at the Greyhound bus station in Montgomery, I thought I was going to die. On March 7th, 1965, when I was hit in the head with a night stick by a State Trooper at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge, I thought I was going to die. I thought I saw death, but nothing can make me question the philosophy of nonviolence.

  John Lewis

  Philosophy, Night, Bridges

  184 Copy quote

• You cannot give up - you have to be persistent and keep pushing, and press on.

  John Lewis

  Giving Up, Pushing, Persistent

  "The Long March Of John Lewis". Interview with Jamil Smith, www.mtv.com. August 5, 2016.

  79 Copy quote

• When people tell me nothing has changed, I say come walk in my shoes and I will show you change.

  John Lewis

  Change, Shoes, People

  Twitter post from Mar 07, 2015

  166 Copy quote

• We have come a long way in America because of Martin Luther King, Jr. He led a disciplined, nonviolent revolution under the rule of law, a revolution of values, a revolution of ideas. We've come a long way, but we still have a distance to go before all of our citizens embrace the idea of a truly interracial democracy, what I like to call the Beloved Community, a nation at peace with itself.

  John Lewis

  Kings, Distance, Beloved Community

  136 Copy quote

• Don`t give up! Don`t give in! Keep the faith! And keep your eyes on the prize!

  John Lewis

  Giving Up, Don't Give Up, Eye

  "All In With Chris Hayes, Transcript". www.msnbc.com. June 23, 2016.

  86 Copy quote

• We built a coalition of conscience, and that we can do it again, and we can go forward, and help redeem the soul of America.

  John Lewis

  America, Soul, Helping

  "The Long March of John Lewis". Interview with Jamil Smith, www.mtv.com. August 5, 2016.

  42 Copy quote

• Nonviolence is one of those immutable principles that we cannot and must not deviate from.

  John Lewis

  Principles, Deviate, Nonviolence

  Source: www.teachingbooks.net

  9 Copy quote

• You have to have the capacity and the ability to take what people did, and how they did it, and forgive them and move on.

  John Lewis

  Moving, People, Forgiving

  Source: www.teachingbooks.net

  68 Copy quote

• We never gave up. We didn't get lost in a sea of despair. We kept the faith. We kept pushing and pulling. We kept marching. And we made some progress.

  John Lewis

  Sea, Progress, Despair

  "John Lewis marches on: “Our struggle is a struggle to redeem the soul of America”". Interview with Philip Eil, www.salon.com. August 9, 2016.

  54 Copy quote

• I truly believe that one day we will get there, we will arrive. And if we do it right in America, maybe, just maybe, we can serve as a model for the rest of the world.

  John Lewis

  Believe, America, One Day

  "John Lewis marches on: “Our struggle is a struggle to redeem the soul of America”". Interview with Philip Eil, www.salon.com. August 9, 2016.

  75 Copy quote

• I say to people today, 'You must be prepared if you believe in something. If you believe in something, you have to go for it. As individuals, we may not live to see the end.

  John Lewis

  Believe, People, May

  49 Copy quote

• I have fought too hard and for too long against discrimination based on race and color not to stand up against discrimination based on sexual orientation. I've heard the reasons for opposing civil marriage for same-sex couples. Cut through the distractions, and they stink of the same fear, hatred and intolerance I have known in racism and in bigotry.

  John Lewis

  Sex, Couple, Cutting

  68 Copy quote

• I've said it in the past and I'll say it again today: the vote is precious; it's almost sacred.

  John Lewis

  Past, Sacred, Today

  "John Lewis marches on: “Our struggle is a struggle to redeem the soul of America”". Interview with Philip Eil, www.salon.com. August 9, 2016.

  21 Copy quote

• But you have to have hope. You have to be optimistic in order to continue to move forward.

  John Lewis

  Moving, Optimistic, Order

  "'I Felt That We Had to Be Tough': John Lewis Remembers the March on Washington". "PBS NewsHour" with Gwen Ifill, www.pbs.org. August 26, 2013.

  23 Copy quote

• The reward for playing jazz is playing jazz.

  John Lewis

  Music, Rewards, Playing Jazz

  21 Copy quote

• To make it hard, to make it difficult almost impossible for people to cast a vote is not in keeping with the democratic process.

  John Lewis

  People, Impossible, Vote

  43 Copy quote

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