Freedom Of Thought Quotes - Page 2

• Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.

  Martin Luther King, Jr.

  Freedom, 4th Of July, Direct Action

  "Letter from Birmingham Jail," 16 Apr. 1963

  134 Copy quote

  Show source

• If this nation is to be wise as well as strong, if we are to achieve our destiny, then we need more new ideas for more wise men reading more good books in more public libraries. These libraries should be open to all — except the censor. We must know all the facts and hear all the alternatives and listen to all the criticisms. Let us welcome controversial books and controversial authors. For the Bill of Rights is the guardian of our security as well as our liberty.

  John F. Kennedy

  Wise, Strong, Reading

  Saturday Review, p. 44, October 29, 1960.

  15 Copy quote

  Show source

• I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than those attending too small a degree of it.

  Thomas Jefferson

  Freedom, Government, Political

  Letter to Archibald Stewart, 23 Dec. 1791

  83 Copy quote

  Show source

• I believe in the complete freedom of thought and speech - alike for the humblest man and the mightiest, and in the utmost freedom of conduct that is consistent with living in organized
  society.

  H. L. Mencken

  Believe, Men, Speech

  "What I Believe", The Forum 84 (p. 139), September, 1930.

  10 Copy quote

  Show source

• I had a right to my own political opinions. I am a Southern woman, born with Revolutionary blood in my veins. Freedom of speech and of thought were my birthright, guaranteed, signed and sealed by the blood of our fathers.

  Rose O'Neal Greenhow

  Freedom, Father, War

  158 Copy quote
• 

  For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.

  Nelson Mandela

  Inspirational, Positive, Inspiring

  Nelson Mandela (2011). “Nelson Mandela By Himself: The Authorised Book of Quotations”, p.158, Pan Macmillan

  309 Copy quote

  Show source

• The real stumbling-block of totalitarian regimes is not the spiritual need of men for freedom of thought; it is men's inability to stand the physical and nervous strain of a permanent state of excitement, except during a few years of their youth.

  Simone Weil

  Spiritual, Block, Real

  Simone Weil (2015). “Selected Essays, 1934-1943: Historical, Political, and Moral Writings”, p.189, Wipf and Stock Publishers

  5 Copy quote

  Show source

• Freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of religion all have a double aspect - freedom of thought and freedom of action.

  Frank Murphy

  Freedom Of Speech, Double Standard, Action

  52 Copy quote

• Driven from every other corner of the earth, freedom of thought and the right of private judgment in matters of conscience direct their course to this happy country as their last asylum.

  Samuel Adams

  Happiness, Country, Religious

  "American Independence". Speech to the State House in Philadelphia, www.revolutionary-war-and-beyond.com. August 01, 1776.

  27 Copy quote

  Show source

• Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it.

  George Bernard Shaw

  Inspirational, Freedom, Fear

  Man and Superman (1903) "Maxims for Revolutionists: Liberty and Equality"

  192 Copy quote

  Show source

• The ideal of progress, freedom of thought, and the decline of ecclesiastical power go together.

  J. B. Bury

  Progress, Atheism, Together

  J. B. Bury (2014). “A History of Freedom of Thought (Illustrated)”, p.141, Lulu Press, Inc

  10 Copy quote

  Show source

• Liberty, when it begins to take root, is a plant of rapid growth.

  George Washington

  Memorial Day, Freedom, 4th Of July

  George Washington, Stephen Lucas (1999). “The Quotable George Washington: The Wisdom of an American Patriot”, p.55, Rowman & Littlefield

  42 Copy quote

  Show source

• The freedom of thought and expression is one of the most sacred rights in this country.

  Eliot Engel

  Country, Rights, Expression

  10 Copy quote

• They [the Pilgrims] believed in freedom of thought for themselves and for all other people who believed exactly as they did.

  Will Cuppy

  People, Pilgrim

  Will Cuppy (1950). “The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody”, p.213, David R. Godine Publisher

  7 Copy quote

  Show source

• I want to have freedom of thought and expression - not get beaten down into some corporate existence, where there's so much risk of embracing the truth that you feel like you can't do it.

  D.A. Wallach

  Expression, Risk, Want

  Source: www.interviewmagazine.com

  4 Copy quote

  Show source

• Heresy is only another word for freedom of thought.

  Graham Greene

  Political, Doubt, Atheism

  "Freedom of Thought". Speech accepting the Jerusalem Prize, archive.spectator.co.uk. April 06, 1981.

  12 Copy quote

  Show source

• Libraries should be open to all - except the censor.

  John F. Kennedy

  Library, Censorship In Books, Should

  Saturday Review, p. 44, October 29, 1960.

  18 Copy quote

  Show source

• Freedom of thought and freedom of speech in our great institutions are absolutely necessary for the preservation of our country. The moment either is restricted, liberty begins to wither and die.

  John Peter Altgeld

  Country, Freedom Of Speech, Liberty

  52 Copy quote

• Let nobody be afraid of true freedom of thought. Let us be free in thought and criticism; but, with freedom, we are bound to come to the conclusion that science is not antagonistic to religion, but a help to it.

  Lord Kelvin

  Freedom, Criticism, Helping

  8 Copy quote

• Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us.

  William O. Douglas

  Teaching, Rights In America, Political Revolution

  "The One Un-American Act". William O. Douglas' speech to the Author's Guild Council in New York on receiving the 1951 Lauterbach Award, December 3, 1952.

  81 Copy quote

  Show source

• The very aim and end of our institutions is just this: that we may think what we like and say what we think.

  Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.

  Thinking, Freedom Of Speech, May

  Oliver Wendell Holmes (2007). “Professor At The Breakfast Table”, p.118, Reprint Services Corporation

  15 Copy quote

  Show source
• 

  But a Constitution of Government once changed from Freedom, can never be restored. Liberty, once lost, is lost forever.

  John Adams

  Government, Presidential, Forever

  John Adams (2012). “The Letters of John and Abigail Adams”, p.76, Simon and Schuster

  231 Copy quote

  Show source

• The first amendment protects free speech, but if you don't have freedom of thought, do you really have freedom of speech?

  Rob Kampia

  Freedom Of Speech, Firsts, First Amendment

  8 Copy quote

• The freedom of thought and action we Americans enjoy today seems as natural as the air we breathe. But there is a danger we may take this freedom for granted. We must never forget it was bought for us at a great price. The brave and resourceful Americans whose sacrifices gained our Independence and preserved it for more than 200 years against formidable foes have set an example of unflinching loyalty to the ideal of liberty and justice for all.

  Ronald Reagan

  Loyalty, Sacrifice, Justice For All

  52 Copy quote

• I would like to be remembered as a person who wanted to be free... so other people would be also free.

  Rosa Parks

  Freedom, People, Would Be

  222 Copy quote