Fannie Lou Hamer Quotes

Hate won’t only destroy us. It will destroy these people that’s hating as well.

Righteousness exalts a nation. Hate just makes people miserable.

It’s time for America to get right.

If the white man gives you anything – just remember when he gets ready he will take it right back. We have to take for ourselves.

But you see now baby, whether you have a ph.d., d.d. or no d, we’re in this bag together. And whether you are from Morehouse or Nohouse, we,re still in this bag together.

When I liberate myself, I liberate others. If you don’t speak out ain’t nobody going to speak out for you.

Nobody’s free until everybody’s free.

That’s why I want to change Mississippi. You don’t run away from problems – you just face them.

I guess if I’d had any sense, I’d have been a little scared [to register to vote] – but what was the point of being scared? The only thing they could do was kill me, and it kinda seemed like they’d been trying to do that a little bit at a time since I could remember.

It was the 31st of August in 1962 that eighteen of us traveled twenty-six miles to the county courthouse in Indianola to try to register to become first-class citizens. We was met in Indianola by policemen, Highway Patrolmen, and they only allowed two of us in to take the literacy test at the time.

White Americans today don’t know what in the world to do because when they put us behind them, that’s where they made their mistake… they put us behind them, and we watched every move they made.

When I liberate others, I liberate myself.

One day, I know the struggle will change. There’s got to be a change – not only for Mississippi, not only for the people in the United States, but people all over the world.

I’m showing the people that a Negro can run for office.