Martin Luther King Jr. is highly known for his powerful speech “I Have a Dream”. He was an American activist and the Civil Rights Movement leader who influenced the flow of history. Today millions of people get inspired by his works and quotes that are spread worldwide. I would like to share with you the most powerful and inspiring Martin Luther King quotes on life, leadership, education, equality, and peace. Enjoy the collection and stay inspired!
Motivational Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes
“A man who won’t die for something is not fit to live.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“No person has the right to rain on your dreams.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Love your enemies” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The Universe is on the side of Justice” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“You can kill the dreamer, but you can’t kill the dream.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Those who are not looking for happiness are the most likely to find it because those who are searching forget that the surest way to be happy is to seek happiness for others.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The richer we have become materially, the poorer we become morally and spiritually.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The time is always right to do what is right.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The worst of all tragedies is not to die young, but to live until I am seventy-five and yet not ever truly to have lived.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Take the first step in faith. You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The soft-minded man always fears change. He feels security in the status quo, and he has an almost morbid fear of the new. For him, the greatest pain is the pain of a new idea.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“It does not matter how long you live, but how well you do it.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
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“A man can’t ride your back unless it’s bent.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The difference between a dreamer and a visionary is that a dreamer has his eyes closed and a visionary has his eyes open” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“You are not only responsible for what you say, but also for what you do not say” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The surest way to be happy is to seek happiness for others.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“A man dies when he refuses to stand up for that which is right.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“We cannot walk alone.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle.”- Martin Luther King Jr.
“Don’t allow anybody to make you feel that you’re nobody.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“We must use time creatively.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“If we do not act, we shall surely be dragged down the long, dark, and shameful corridors of time reserved for those who possess power without compassion, might without morality, and strength without sight.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes On Leadership
“There is no gain without a struggle.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Lightning makes no sound until it strikes.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Courage faces fear and thereby masters it” – Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes On Education
“The function of education, therefore, is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Knowledge is a process of piling up facts; wisdom lies in their simplification.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The group consisting of mother, father, and child is the main educational agency of mankind.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Intelligence plus character; that is the goal of true education.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes On Equality
“I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out of the true meaning of its creed: “We hold this truth to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“We must live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes About Peace
“Be the peace you wish to see in the world!” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“We must come to see that the end we seek is a society at peace with itself, a society that can live with its conscience.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“True peace is not merely the absence of tension: it is the presence of justice.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Peace is not simply the absence of conflict, but the existence of justice for all people.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Please be peaceful. We believe in law and order.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“At the center of non-violence stands the principle of love” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“We must concentrate not merely on the negative expulsion of war but the positive affirmation of peace.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes About Freedom
“Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The road to freedom is a difficult, hard road. It always makes for temporary setbacks.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“There is nothing more majestic than the determined courage of individuals willing to suffer and sacrifice for their freedom and dignity.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“The only weapon that we have in our hands this evening is the weapon of protest. That’s all.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Freedom has always been an expensive thing. History is a fit testimony to the fact that freedom is rarely gained without sacrifice and self-denial.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes About Love
“Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice. Justice at its best is love correcting everything that stands against love.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Everybody can be great; you only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Hate is too big of a burden to bear. I have decided to love.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“Love is the only force capable of transforming an enemy into a friend.” – Martin Luther King Jr.
“There can be no deep disappointment where there is not deep love.”
Tetiana is a business coach and owner of IStartHub, a business media for ambitious female entrepreneurs and small business owners.