22 Martin Luther King Jr. Inspirational Quotes

Martin Luther King Jr. (Born January 15, 1929) was an American Baptist minister and activist who became the most visible spokesperson and leader in the civil rights movement from 1954 until his death in 1968. Born in Atlanta, King is best known for advancing civil rights through nonviolence and civil disobedience, tactics his Christian beliefs and the nonviolent activism of Mahatma Gandhi helped inspire. He fought for equal rights for African-Americans at a time when segregation was prevalent. From his iconic "I Have a Dream" speech during the March on Washington in 1963 to his famous Alabama march from Selma to Montgomery, King was a beacon of hope during a dark time in American history. He advocated for non-violence, preaching love, acceptance and equality while pushing for change.

Here are 22 inspiring quotes by Dr King.

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 "Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase." 

"Every man must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness."

"To other countries, I may go as a tourist, but to India, I come as a pilgrim."

"If a man has not discovered something that he will die for, he isn't fit to live."

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?'"

"The time is always right to do what is right."

"Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend."

"The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character - that is the goal of true education."

"In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that."

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

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

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."

"A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus."

"Everything that we see is a shadow cast by that which we do not see."

"We may have all come on different ships, but we're in the same boat now."

"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter."

"There can be no deep disappointment where there is not deep love."

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

"We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools."

"I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear."

"Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."