Quotes by Martin Luther King Jr.

About Martin Luther King Jr.:

Martin Luther King, Jr. is best known for his role in the advancement of civil rights using nonviolent civil disobedience based on his Christian beliefs.
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Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars... Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.

Martin Luther King Jr.

We should never forget that everything Adolph Hitler did in Germany was "legal" and everything the Hungarian freedom fighers did in Hungary was "illegal." It was "illegal" to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler's Germany.

Martin Luther King Jr.

The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you may murder the liar, but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish t...

Martin Luther King Jr.

Those who love peace must learn to organize as effectively as those who love war.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge, which is power; religion gives man wisdom, which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals.

Martin Luther King Jr.

We must learn that passively to accept an unjust system is to cooperate with that system, and thereby to become a participant in its evil.

Martin Luther King Jr.

In our glorious fight for civil rights, we must guard against being fooled by false slogans, such as 'right-to-work.' It provides no 'rights' and no 'works.' Its purpose is to destroy labor unions and the freedom of collective bargaining…. We deman...

Martin Luther King Jr.

If a man hasn’t found something he will die for, he isn’t fit to live.

Martin Luther King Jr.

we shall match your capacity to inflict suffering by our capacity to endure suffering. We will meet your physical force with soul force. Do to us what you will. And we shall continue to love you.

Martin Luther King Jr.

We must use time creatively - and forever realize that the time is always hope to do great things.

Martin Luther King Jr.

On some positions, cowardice asks the question, is it expedient? And then expedience comes along and asks the question, is it politic? Vanity asks the question, is it popular? Conscience asks the question, is it right? There comes a time when one mus...

Martin Luther King Jr.

But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions ar...

Martin Luther King Jr.

Violence is not only impractical but immoral.

Martin Luther King Jr.

The choice is not between violence and nonviolence but between nonviolence and nonexistence.

Martin Luther King Jr.

No work is insignificant. All labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle. And so we must straighten our backs and work for our freedom. A man can't ride you unless your back is bent.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Capitalism does not permit an even flow of economic resources. With this system, a small privileged few are rich beyond conscience, and almost all others are doomed to be poor at some level. That's the way the system works. And since we know that the...

Martin Luther King, Jr.
Freedom quotes by Martin Luther King, Jr., UberQuotes

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

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever. The yearning for freedom eventually manifests itself.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

We must build dikes of courage to hold back the flood of fear.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Author Bio

  • NameMartin Luther King, Jr.
  • DescriptionAmerican clergyman, activist, and leader in the American Civil Rights Movement
  • AliasesMLK; Martin Luther King; Michael King; Michael King, Jr.
  • BornJanuary 15, 1929
  • DiedApril 4, 1968
  • CountryUnited States Of America
  • ProfessionCleric; Political Activist; Theologian; Orator; Minister; Writer
  • AwardsNobel Peace Prize; Jawaharlal Nehru Award For International Understanding; Spingarn Medal; Presidential Medal Of Freedom; United Nations Prize In The Field Of Human Rights; Gandhi Peace Award; Pacem In Terris Award; Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards