Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.
¶ (Attributed)
Quotations by ...
Robert Francis Kennedy (1925-1968) American politician
What is dangerous about extremists is not that they are extreme, but that they are intolerant. The evil is not what they say about their cause, but what they say about their opponents.
¶ The Pursuit of Justice, “Extremism, Left and Right” (1964).
It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and injustice.
¶ Day of Affirmation Address, University of Capetown, South Africa (6 Jun 1966)
(Inscribed on the RFK gravesite at Arlington National Cemetery)
Laws can embody standards; governments can enforce laws — but the final task is not a task for government. It is a task for each and every one of us. Every time we turn our heads the other way when we see the law flouted—when we tolerate what we know to be wrong—when we close our eyes and ears to the corrupt because we are too busy, or too frightened — when we fail to speak up and speak out — we strike a blow against freedom and decency and justice.
¶ Remarks before Jewish groups, Chicago (21 Jun 1961)
First, is the dangers of futility; the belief there is nothing one man or one woman can do against the enormous array of the world’s ills — against misery and ignorance, injustice and violence. Yet many of the world’s great movements, of thought and action, have flowed from the work of a single man.
¶ “Day of Affirmation,” address, University of Capetown, South Africa (6 Jun 1966)
At the heart of that western freedom and democracy is the belief that the individual man, the child of God, is the touchstone of value, and all society, groups, the state, exist for his benefit. Therefore the enlargement of liberty for individual human beings must be the supreme goal and the abiding practice of any western society.
¶ “Day of Affirmation,” address, University of Capetown, South Africa (6 Jun 1966)
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WIST is my collection of quotations I find meaningful, moving, amusing (intended or not), well-phrased, and/or to which I just say I "Wish I'd Said That." But just because I quote it here doesn't mean I actually agree with it. If you have any comments, corrections, or suggestions, please don't hesitate to
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