Progress is possible, but it is fragile - and across our country, the battles for our most basic civil rights rage on.
Interpretation
Progress in civil rights is achievable but delicate, requiring constant vigilance and effort.
Stacey Abrams highlights the idea that while we can make significant advancements in civil rights, these gains are not permanent and must be defended against ongoing challenges. This quote underscores the fragility of progress and the need for active participation in the fight for equity and justice in society.
In practice
This quote can be used in a speech at a civil rights rally to inspire activists.
I grew up one of six children with working-class parents in the Deep South. My mother was a college librarian, and my father worked in a shipyard. I never saw them balance a checkbook, but they kept a roof over our heads and got all six of us into college.
I do not Google myself, I do not read comments, and I barely look myself in the eye when I look in the mirror.
My being a black woman is not a deficit. It is a strength. Because I could not be where I am had I not overcome so many other barriers. Which means you know I'm relentless, you know I'm persistent, and you know I'm smart.
The basis for sustainable progress is legal protections grounded in an awareness of how identity has been used to deny opportunity.
I like to solve problems. I know it is a skill set, but it's also an obligation. I grew up with parents who believe that you don't simply complain: you try to find solutions and fix what's in front of you.
Here in Georgia, we continue to grapple with our own vestiges of hate. The image carved into Stone Mountain, like Confederate monuments across this state, stand as constant reminders of racism, intolerance, and division.
If I was afraid of being killed, I would never speak out against the government.
It is heroic to prepare for war with a tyrant power. Patriots will always win the admiration of mankind for daring to meet the bloodshed of battle for their country's liberty. But the patriot who is willing to go to that sacrifice will be the first to condemn the aimless and secret shedding of blood in time of peace.
Someone is always at my elbow reminding me that I am the granddaughter of slaves. It fails to register depression with me.
I had no answer to those questions, only hope. With absolutely no one to turn to, no Mikey, no Axe, no Danny, I have to face the final battle by myself, maybe lonely, maybe desolate, maybe against formidable odds. But I was not giving up. I had only one Teammate. And He moved, as ever, in mysterious ways. But I was a Christian, and He had somehow saved me from a thousand AK-47 bullets on that day. No one had shot me, which was well nigh beyond all comprehension.
The traveller with empty pockets will sing in the thief 's face.
There is nothing I love as much as a good fight.
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