The nonviolent approach does not immediately change the heart of the oppressor. It first does something to the hearts and souls of those committed to it. It gives them new self-respect; it calls up resources of strength and courage that they did not know they had. Finally it reaches the opponent and so stirs his conscience that reconciliation becomes a reality.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

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About Martin Luther King Jr.

Portrait of Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr. (born Michael King Jr.; January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968), also known as MLK, was an American Baptist minister, civil rights activist and political philosopher who was a leader of the civil rights movement from 1955 until his assassination in 1968. He advanced civil rights...

More quotations from Martin Luther King Jr.

We are called to play the good Samaritan on life's roadside; but that will be only an initial act. One day the whole Jericho road must be transformed so that men and women will not be beaten and robbed as they make their journey through life. True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it understands that an edifice that produces beggars needs restructuring.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

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The question is not whether we will be extremist but what kind of extremist will we be.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

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Reconsider your definitions. 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 mankind.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

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For evil to succeed, all it needs is for good men to do nothing.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

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We are not makers of history. We are made by history.

—Martin Luther King Jr.

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More quotations tagged with “self-respect”

In order to preserve your self-respect, it is sometimes necessary to lie and cheat.

—Robert Byrne

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Never be ruled by possessions, and never, ever make wealth more important to you than your self-respect and your dignity.

—Julie Garwood in Prince Charming

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Self-love, self-respect, self-approval, and self-worth do not equal self-ish.

—Mandy Hale in The Single Woman

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The willingness to accept responsibility for one's own life is the source from which self-respect springs.

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Would that there were an award for people who come to understand the concept of enough. Good enough. Successful enough. Thin enough. Rich enough. Socially responsible enough. When you have self-respect, you have enough, and when you have enough, you have self-respect.

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