Famous quotes
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Freedom
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“Leave Saddam in power? So that he would be free to continue killing, free to invade his neighbors, so that he would be free to — I am sorry — develop nuclear weapons? No.”
Barham Salih (born 1960) first seen 2007 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in "Regrets Only?" (7 October 2007), by Dexter Filkins, The New York Times Magazine
“The black man's interest lies in seeing a free and independent Vietnam, a strong Vietnam which is not the puppet of international white supremacy. If the nations of Asia, Latin America, and Africa are strong and free, the black man in America will be safe and secure and free to live in dignity and self-respect.”
Eldridge Cleaver (1935–1998) said by 1998 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Children should above all be taught self-reliance, love for all men, altruism, mutual charity, and more than anything else, to think and reason for themselves... Aim at creating free men and women, free intellectually, free morally, unprejudiced in all respects, and above all things, unselfish.”
Helena Blavatsky (1831–1891) said by 1891 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Huck and — and the slave.... they … they were going up the river, trying to get free…. and — in trying to get free … they see that they're sort of free already…”
“The thing about free speech and free expression is people that are interested in it are by their very nature always tending to explore the boundaries...In a society that prizes free expression and one that has a great premium upon the marketplace of ideas, it's hard to say that someone went too far in expressing themselves when really no harm was done.”
Jay Leiderman (1971–2021) said by 2021 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Who is secure in all his basic needs? Who has work, spiritual care, medical care, housing, food, occasional entertainment, free clothing, free burial, free everything? The answer might be “monks and nuns,” but the standard reply is, “prisoners.” And inevitably this conjures up citizens of the Provider State who have protection from the “cradle to the grave.”
Erik von Kuehnelt-Leddihn (1909–1999) said by 1999 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“My priority is to establish this country as a poverty-free country, we have a long way to go – we have to do more. When I have been able to establish this country as a poverty-free country, a hunger-free country, a developed country, perhaps at that time, perhaps then I may say I am proud.”
Sheikh Hasina (born 1947) first seen 2015 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: At the UN general assembly to launch the (SDGs). (25 September 2015)
“The more subsidized it is, the less free it is. What is known as 'free education' is the least free of all, for it is a state-owned institution; it is socialized education—just like socialized medicine or the socialized post office—and cannot possibly be separated from political control.”
Frank Chodorov (1887–1966) first seen 1948 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: p. 237, “Why Free Schools Are Not Free,” analysis, (October 1948)
“At the end of the day, nothing matters more than protecting our way of life - one that features being the captain of your own life, being free to choose your own faith, being free to express yourself, and being free from coercion.”
Hsu Szu-chien first seen 2019 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Hsu Szu-chien (2019) cited in "Dr. Szu-chien Hsu Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Republic of China (Taiwan) Remarks" on Center for Strategies & International Studies, 10 June 2019.
“In addition, going by the free education policy, the only problem is that, how free is the free, when you find little charges?”
Aishatu Madawaki (born 1951) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“In a "free country" like the U.S. you are free to ask questions, but you are not really free to question.”
Bob Avakian (born 1943) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I am an advocate for car-free cities, car-free city sections and car-free living.”
Andy Singer (born 1965) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Free markets can't be separated from other freedoms Americans have cherished and sometimes taken for granted. Due process, the rule of law, free speech, a free press and honest elections have been among our most powerful advantages in the global economy.”
Robert Rubin (born 1938) first seen 2026 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Why Have Business Leaders Gone Silent?", Wall Street Journal (January 15, 2026)
“[T]he contends that ageing and many of... [its associated] diseases... are caused by... free radicals leaking from mitochondria during normal . ...As they burn up food using oxygen, the free-radical sparks escape to damage adjacent structures ...Many cruel inherited conditions... are linked with mutations caused by free radicals attacking mitochondrial genes.”
“(I'm free!) Heaven helps the man who fights his fear. Love's the only thing that keeps me here. (I'm free!) You're the reason that I'm hanging on. My heart's staying where my heart belongs. (I'm free!)”
Kenny Loggins (born 1948) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The opposite concept of the Latin religio should be sought in the Latin verb negligere. To be religious is synonymous with responsibility, not neglect. To be responsible is to be free — to possess the concrete means of exercising free action. At the same time, to be free is also to be connected to others by a common spirituality.”
Alain de Benoist (born 1943) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“My friend told me to come and play, and I said I wasn’t keen, but then he said there’ll be free KFC, and then I was like ‘No, I have to go now because we’re getting free food. Everyone likes free food.’”
Andile Simelane (born 2003) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“My country, ’t is of thee, Sweet land of liberty Of thee I sing: Land where my fathers died, Land of the pilgrims’ pride, From every mountain-side Let freedom ring.”
Samuel Francis Smith (1808–1895) said by 1895 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: America, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
“Our fathers’ God, to thee, Author of liberty, To thee I sing; Long may our land be bright With freedom’s holy light; Protect us by thy might, Great God, our King!”
Samuel Francis Smith (1808–1895) said by 1895 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: America, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919).
“Hey Uncle Sam Put your name at the top of his list And the Statue of Liberty Started shaking her fist. And the eagle will fly Man, it's gonna be hell When you hear Mother Freedom Start ringing her bell And it feels like the whole wide world is raining down on you Brought to you Courtesy of the Red White and Blue.”
Toby Keith (1961–2024) said by 2024 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Liberty consists in the freedom to do everything which injures no one else; hence the exercise of the natural rights of each man has no limits except those which assure to the other members of the society the enjoyment of the same rights.”
Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette (1757–1834) first seen 1789 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Declaration of the Rights of Man (1789)
“So long as you do not achieve social liberty, whatever freedom is provided by the law is of no avail to you.”
B. R. Ambedkar (1891–1956) first seen 1936 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Speech delivered to the Bombay Presidency Mahar Conference (31 May 1936)
“Look for me in the whirlwind or the storm, look for me all around you, for, with God's grace, I shall come and bring with me countless millions of black slaves who have died in America and the West Indies and the millions in Africa to aid you in the fight for Liberty, Freedom and Life.”
Marcus Garvey (1887–1940) first seen 1925 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: First Message to the Negroes of the World from Atlanta Prison" (10 February 1925).
“Hail the mild morning, where the dawn began, The full fruition of the hopes of man. Where sage Experience seals the sacred cause, And that rare union, Liberty and Laws, Speaks to the reas'ning race “to freedom rise, Like them be equal, and like them be wise.”
Joel Barlow (1754–1812) said by 1812 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“England alone has a history in which ancient freedom has made its way through, and utilised all that is good in feudalism, widening from precedent to precedent into perfect political liberty.”
William Stubbs (1825–1901) said by 1901 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Freedom brings responsibility and often guilt. It may indeed provide a deeper satisfaction and a richer life, but the evaluation of such rewards is a distressingly subjective process. Perhaps no argument in favor of liberty can satisfy the intellect; perhaps the best we can hope for is a shared emotional conviction.”
Poul Anderson (1926–2001) said by 2001 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Liberty is more precious than money or office; and we should be vigilant lest we purchase wealth or place at the price of inner freedom.”
John Lancaster Spalding (1840–1916) said by 1916 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“It was an elevating, transforming vision: a new, fresh, vigorous, and above all morally regenerate people rising from the obscurity to defend the battlements of liberty and then in triumph standing forth, heartening and sustaining the cause of freedom everywhere.”
Bernard Bailyn (1922–2020) said by 2020 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“He who confuses political liberty with freedom and political equality with similarity has never thought for five minutes about either.”
George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950) said by 1950 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Not every defeat of authority is a gain for individual freedom, nor every judicial rescue of a convict a victory for liberty.”
Robert H. Jackson (1892–1954) said by 1954 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The forces of safety are afoot in the land. I, for one, believe it is a conspiracy— a conspiracy of Safety Nazis shouting "Sieg Health" and seeking to trammel freedom, liberty, and large noisy parties. The Safety Nazis advocate gun control, vigorous exercise, and health foods. The result can only be a disarmed, exhausted, and half-starved population ready to acquiesce to dictatorship of some kind.”
P. J. O'Rourke (1947–2022) said by 2022 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Striking a balance in favor of individual rights has always been the right decision for us and that it remains so even when technology gives us new ways to exercise those rights. Individual liberty has never weakened us; freedom of speech, enhanced by the Net, will only make us stronger.”
Mike Godwin (born 1956) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“For decades, the circle of liberty and security and development has been expanding in our world. This progress has brought unity to Europe, self-government to Latin America and Asia, and new hope to Africa. Now we have the historic chance to widen the circle even further, to fight radicalism and terror with justice and dignity, to achieve a true peace, founded on human freedom.”
George W. Bush (born 1946) wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The great writers to whom the world owes what religious liberty it possesses, have mostly asserted freedom of conscience as an indefeasible right, and denied absolutely that a human being is accountable to others for his religious belief.”
John Stuart Mill (1806–1873) said by 1873 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“As a liberal I would hesitate to propose a blanket ban on any style of dress because of the implications for individual liberty and freedom of choice.”
Richard Dawkins (born 1941) first seen 2010 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in Richard Dawkins causes outcry after likening the burka to a bin liner (10 August 2010), .
“This sacrifice of common sense is the certain badge which distinguishes slavery from freedom; for when men yield up the privilege of thinking, the last shadow of liberty quits the horizon.”
Thomas Paine (1737–1809) first seen 1775 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Reflections on Titles", Pennsylvania Magazine (May, 1775)
“Two hundred and fifty years after his birth, Washington's star shines brighter than ever. "Our cause is noble," he said, "it is the cause of mankind!" Pursuit of liberty and justice under God is still the most inspiring, the most successful, the most revolutionary idea the world has ever known. Words alone cannot express how much we revere this giant for freedom.”
Ronald Reagan (1911–2004) said by 2004 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“A warlike nation like the Germans, without either cities, letters, arts, or money, found some compensation for this savage state in the enjoyment of liberty. Their poverty secured their freedom, since our desires and our possessions are the strongest fetters of despotism.”
Edward Gibbon (1737–1794) said by 1794 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Marcus Aurelius wrote the following about Severus (a person who is not clearly identifiable according to the footnote): Through him [...] I became acquainted with the conception of a community based on equality and freedom of speech for all, and of a monarchy concerned primarily to uphold the liberty of the subject.”
Marcus Aurelius (121–180) said by 180 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“If individual liberty goes, then surely all is lost, for, if the individual ceases to count, what is left of society? Individual freedom alone can make a man voluntarily surrender himself completely to the service of society. If it is wrested from him, he becomes automaton and society is ruined.”
Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) first seen 1942 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Harijan (1 February 1942) p. 27
“No society can possibly be built upon a denial of individual freedom.It is contrary to the very nature of man. Just as a man will not grow horns or a tail, so will he not exist as man if he has no mind of his own. In reality even those who do not believe in the liberty of the individual believe in their own.”
Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) first seen 1942 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Conquest of Violence: The Gandhian Philosophy of Conflict by Joan V. Bondurant (1965) University of California Press, Berkeley: CA, p. 174. Harijan (1 February 1942) p. 27
“It'll be the ballot or it'll be the bullet. It'll be liberty or it'll be death. And if you're not ready to pay that price don't use the word freedom in your vocabulary.”
Malcolm X (1925–1965) said by 1965 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Money is coined liberty, and so it is ten times dearer to the man who is deprived of freedom. If money is jingling in his pocket, he is half consoled, even though he cannot spend it. But money can always and everywhere be spent, and, moreover, forbidden fruit is sweetest of all.”
Fyodor Dostoyevsky (1821–1881) first seen 1862 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: The House of the Dead (1862) ch. 1; as translated by Constance Garnett (1915), p. 16
“Democracy extends the sphere of individual freedom, socialism restricts it. Democracy attaches all possible value to each man; socialism makes each man a mere agent, a mere number. Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word: equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude.”
Alexis de Tocqueville (1805–1859) first seen 1848 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: 12 September 1848, "Discours prononcé à l'assemblée constituante le 12 Septembre 1848 sur la question du droit au travail", Oeuvres complètes, vol. IX, p. 546; Translation (from Hayek, The Road to Serfdom):
“I don't think the U.N. has any jurisdiction. And particularly when this question is raised by Cuba, a government that has no respect for individual freedom or individual liberty and permits no vote of any kind in their own country, to accuse us of trying to subjugate the people of Puerto Rico, to me, is absolutely and patently ridiculous.”
Jimmy Carter (1924–2024) said by 2024 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“But a Constitution of Government once changed from Freedom, can never be restored. Liberty, once lost, is lost forever.”
John Adams (1735–1826) first seen 1775 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Letter to Abigail Adams (7 July 1775)
“Individual liberty is individual power, and as the power of a community is a mass compounded of individual powers, the nation which enjoys the most freedom must necessarily be in proportion to its numbers the most powerful nation.”
John Quincy Adams (1767–1848) first seen 1822 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Letter to James Lloyd (1 October 1822)
“Rooted in freedom, bonded in the fellowship of danger, sharing everywhere a common human blood, we declare again that all men are brothers, and that mutual tolerance is the price of liberty.”
Will Durant (1885–1981) said by 1981 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Mr. Khan, paid the ultimate sacrifice in his family, didn't he. And what has he heard from Donald Trump? Nothing but insults, degrading comments about Muslims, a total misunderstanding of what made our country great, religious freedom, religious liberty. It's enshrined in our Constitution, as Mr. Khan knows, because he's actually read it.”
Hillary Clinton (born 1947) first seen 2016 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: At a church in Cleveland. (July 31, 2016)
“[Freedom of speech] is not only the natural privilege of liberty but also its support and preservation, every man therefore here is allowed to declare his sentiments openly, to speak or write whatever is not prohibited by the laws.”
George III (1738–1820) said by 1820 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Essay (late 1750s), quoted in John Brooke, King George III (1972; 1974), p. 108