Quotes about Progress
One aspect of the civil rights struggle that receives little attention is the contribution it makes to the whole society. The Negro winning in rights for himself produces substantial benefits for the nation.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
The arch of History is long, but it bends towards justice.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
In short, the Negroes' problem cannot be solved unless the whole of American society takes a new turn toward greater economic justice.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
The curse of poverty has no justification in our age. It is socially as cruel and blind as the practice of cannibalism at the dawn of civilization, when men ate each other because they had not yet learned to take food from the soil or to consume the abundant animal life around them. The time has come for us to civilize ourselves by the total, direct and immediate abolition of poverty.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
What we witnessed in the Watts area was the beginning of a stirring of a deprived people in a society who had been by-passed by the progress of the previous decade. I would minimize the racial significance and point to the fact that these were the rumblings of discontent from the "have nots" within the midst of an affluent society.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
Time itself is neutral; it can be used either destructively or constructively
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
No revolution is executed like a ballet. Its steps and gestures are not neatly designed and precisely performed.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
If you can't fly then run. If you can't run, then walk. And, if you can't walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving forward.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
No problem is solved when we idly wait for God to undertake full responsibility.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
To attempt radical reform without adequate organization is like trying to sail a boat without a rudder.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
If you can't fly, then run. If you can't run, then walk. If you can't, then crawl. But by all means, keep moving
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
TODAY I WANT TO TELL THE CITY OF SELMA, TODAY I WANT TO SAY TO THE STATE OF ALABAMA, TODAY I WANT TO SAY TO THE PEOPLE OF AMERICA AND THE NATIONS OF THE WORLD, THAT WE ARE NOT ABOUT TO TURN AROUND.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.