Read: Black History Month Quotes

February is Black History Month, and we invite the Nonotuck community to read and contemplate these quotes from prominent African-American singers, artists, authors, leaders, and thinkers. Share your own favorite quotes via email: murray@nonotuck.com.

“Every time you state what you want or believe, you’re the first to hear it. It’s a message to both you and others about what you think is possible. Don’t put a ceiling on yourself.” —Oprah Winfrey

“If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, you must be the one to write it.” —Toni Morrison

“Never be limited by other people’s limited imaginations.”—Dr. Mae Jemison, first African-American female astronaut

“Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly.”—Langston Hughes

“The time is always right to do what is right.”—Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Just don’t give up what you’re trying to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” —Ella Fitzgerald

“He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life.” —Muhammad Ali

“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

“Those who say it can’t be done are usually interrupted by others doing it.” – James Baldwin

“If you have no critics you’ll likely have no success.” – Malcolm X

“Diversity is not about how we differ. Diversity is about embracing one another’s uniqueness.” – Ola Joseph

“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.”— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Don’t aspire to make a living, aspire to make a difference.”— Denzel Washington

“There is no better than adversity. Every defeat, every heartbreak, every loss, contains its own seed, its own lesson on how to improve your performance next time.”— Malcolm X

“When you’ve worked hard, and done well, and walked through that doorway of opportunity, you do not slam it shut behind you. You reach back and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed.”

–Michelle Obama

“Impossible is just a big word thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in the world they’ve been given than to explore the power they have to change it. Impossible is not a fact. It’s an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It’s a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing.”

— Muhammad Ali