The government officially recognized Black History Month in 1976 and Feb. 1, 2021 marks the 45th time the nation will celebrate Black Americans achievements in the U.S. When President Gerald Ford officially recognized Black History Month in 1976 he called upon the country to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history” according to History.com To honor Black History Month, we have compiled 10 quotes from Black leaders, trailblazers and activists who’ve been working for hundreds of years to ensure to progression, growth and overall pursuit for freedom.
1.”If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” — Frederick Douglass
2. “Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.” – Booker T. Washington
3. “Not only is it true that many of the alleged cases of rape against the Negro, are like the foregoing, but the same crime committed by white men against Negro women and girls, is never punished by mob or the law. A leading journal in South Carolina openly said some months ago that “it is not the same thing for a white man to assault a colored woman as for a colored man to assault a white woman, because the colored woman had no finer feelings nor virtue to be outraged!” Yet colored women have always had far more reason to complain of white men in this respect than ever white women have had of Negroes.” — Ida B. Wells
4. “If we accept and acquiesce in the face of discrimination, we accept the responsibility ourselves and allow those responsible to salve their conscience by believing that they have our acceptance and concurrence. We should, therefore, protest openly everything… that smacks of discrimination or slander.” — Mary McLeod Bethune
5. “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” – Harriet Tubman
6. “Life is not a spectator sport. If you’re going to spend your whole life in the grandstand just watching what goes on, in my opinion you’re wasting your life.” —Jackie Robinson
7. “I’m hungry for knowledge. The whole thing is to learn every day, to get brighter and brighter. That’s what this world is about. You look at someone like Gandhi, and he glowed. Martin Luther King glowed. Muhammad Ali glows. I think that’s from being bright all the time, and trying to be brighter.” —Jay-Z
8. “Truth is powerful and it prevails.” — Sojourner Truth
9. “If you pour too much cream in, you won’t even know you ever had coffee. It used to be hot, it becomes cool. It used to be strong, it becomes weak. It used to wake you up, now it’ll put you to sleep.” — Malcolm X
10. ”You can never know where you are going unless you know where you have been.” — Amelia Boynton Robinson
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