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Martin Luther King, Jr. Quotes - Page 22

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Capitalism is always in danger of inspiring men to be more concerned about making a living than making a life. We are prone to judge success by the index of our salaries or the size of our automobiles, rather than by

Capitalism is always in danger of inspiring men to be more concerned about making a living than making a life. We are prone to judge success by the index of our salaries or the size of our automobiles, rather than by the quality of our service and relationship to humanity-thus capitalism can lead to a practical materialism that is as pernicious as the materialism taught by communism.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Wisdom, Men, Judging
Martin Luther King (Jr.) (1964). “A Martin Luther King Treasury”

The more there are riots, the more repressive actin will take place, and the more we face the danger of a right-wing takeover and eventually a fascist society.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Wings, Faces, Revolution

Nonviolence is not sterile passivity, but a powerful moral force which makes for social transformation.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Powerful, Passivity Is, Social Transformation
Martin Luther King Jr.'s Nobel Peace Prize Speech in Oslo, Norway, www.nobelprize.org. December 10, 1964.

I choose to identify with the underprivileged, I choose to give my life for the hungry, I choose to give my life for those who have been left out of the sunlight of opportunity . . . this is the way I'm going. If it means suffering, I'm going that way. If it means dying for them, I'm going that way, because I heard a voice saying DO SOMETHING FOR OTHERS.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Mean, Opportunity, Voice
Martin Luther King (Jr.), Alex Ayres (1993). “The Wisdom of Martin Luther King, Jr”, Plume

In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men - yes, black men as well as white men - would be guaranteed the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness... America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked 'insufficient funds.'

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Fall, Men, Pursuit Of Happiness
I Have a Dream, delivered 28 August 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.

We need to recapture the gospel glow of the early Christians who were nonconformists in the truest sense of the word . . . Their powerful gospel put an end to such barbaric evils as infanticide and bloody gladiatorial contests. Finally, they captured the Roman Empire for Jesus Christ.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Christian, Jesus, Powerful
Martin Luther King Jr. (1963). “Strength to Love”

Yes, if you want to say that I was a drum major, say that I was a drum major for justice. Say that I was a drum major for peace. I was a drum major for righteousness. And all of the other shallow things will not matter. I won't have any money to leave behind. I won't have the fine and luxurious things of life to leave behind. But I just want to leave a committed life behind. And that's all I want to say.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Justice, Want, Matter
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2013). “The Essential Martin Luther King, Jr.: "I Have a Dream" and Other Great Writings”, p.224, Beacon Press

To accept injustice or segregation passively is to say to the oppressor that his actions are morally right.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Inspirational, Action, Injustice
Martin Luther King (Jr.) (1968). “I Have a Dream: The Quotations of Martin Luther King, Jr”

I think the inconveniences of a segregated education are much greater than the inconveniences of busing students so that they can get an integrated quality education.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Thinking, Quality, Students
Source: www.theatlantic.com

The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Peace, Lying, Commitment
Martin Luther King, Jr. (2012). “A Gift of Love: Sermons from Strength to Love and Other Preachings”, p.17, Beacon Press

When the Negro finds the courage to be free, he faces dogs and guns and clubs and fire hoses totally unafraid, and the white men with those dogs, guns, clubs and fire hoses see that the Negro they have traditionally called "boy" has become a man.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Dog, Gun, Boys
Source: playboysfw.kinja.com

What are you doing for others?

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Kings, Helping Others, Volunteer
Jim Haskins, James Haskins, Martin Luther King (Jr.) (1992). “I have a dream: the life and words of Martin Luther King, Jr”, Millbrook Pr

In any nonviolent campaign there are four basic steps: collection of the facts to determine whether injustices exist; negotiation; self-purification; and direct action.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Self, Direct Action, Campaigns
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2011). “Why We Can't Wait”, p.57, Beacon Press

In a world facing the revolt of ragged and hungry masses of God's children; in a world torn between the tensions of East and West, white and colored, individuals and collectivists; in a world whose cultural and spiritual power lags so far behind her technological capabilities that we live each day on the verge of nuclear co-annihilation; in this world, nonviolence is no longer an option for intellectual analysis, it is an imperative for action

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Spiritual, Children, White
Martin Luther King (Jr.) (2012). “A Gift of Love: Sermons from Strength to Love and Other Preachings”, p.18, Beacon Press

Returning hate, adding deeper darkness to a night that is already void of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Stars, Hate, Loss

At the center of non-violence stands the principle of love.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Love, Thought Provoking, Principles
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (2013). “"In a Single Garment of Destiny": A Global Vision of Justice”, p.100, Beacon Press

We must build dikes of courage to hold back the flood of fear. That old law about "an eye for an eye" leaves everybody blind... The time is always right to do the right thing. Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Mean, Eye, Law

The hope of the world is still in dedicated minorities. The trail-blazers in human, scientific and religious freedom have always been in a minority.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Religious, Minorities, World

Jazz speaks for life. The Blues tell the story of life's difficulties.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Stories, Jazz, Speak

Free at last, Free at last, Thank God almighty we are free at last.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Inspirational, Life, God
Speech at Civil Rights March,Washington, D.C., 28 Aug. 1963

Love even for enemies is the key to the solution of the problems of our world.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Keys, Our World, Enemy
Martin Luther King (Jr.) (2012). “A Gift of Love: Sermons from Strength to Love and Other Preachings”, p.46, Beacon Press

My friends, all I'm trying to say is that if we are to go forward today, we've got to go back and rediscover some mighty precious values that we've left behind. That's the only way that we would be able to make of our world a better world, and to make of this world what God wants it to be and the real purpose and meaning of it.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Inspiring, Real, Our World
"Rediscovering Lost Values". Sermon delivered at Detroit's Second Baptist Church, February 28, 1954.

I think one can live in American society with a certain cultural heritage, whether it's an African heritage or other, European,what have you, and still absorb a great deal of this culture. There is always cultural assimilation.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Thinking, Culture, Heritage
Source: www.theatlantic.com

Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God’s children.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Children, Real, Dark
"I Have a Dream". Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Address Delivered at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, kinginstitute.stanford.edu. August 28, 1963.

We've got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And he's allowed me to go up to the mountaintop. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land.

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Land, Justice, Diversity
I've Been to the Mountaintop, delivered 3 April 1968, Mason Temple (Church of God in Christ Headquarters), Memphis, Tennessee

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