If freedom makes social progress possible, so social progress strengthens and enlarges freedom. The two are inseparable partners in the great adventure of humanity.
Robert KennedyRead
But suppose God is black? What if we go to Heaven and we, all our lives, have treated the Negro as an inferior, and God is there, and we look up and He is not white? What then is our response?
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote challenges societal prejudices by prompting reflection on racial equality and divine essence.
Robert Kennedy's quote provocatively asks us to consider our deeply-rooted biases by flipping the narrative on racial identity. It encourages us to reflect on the implications of our actions and beliefs if we were confronted with a reality where the divine does not conform to our preconceived notions of race, thus emphasizing the importance of equality and humanity.
Themes
RaceEqualityPrejudiceDiversityHumanity
In practice
Example use cases
This quote would be powerful in a speech about racial justice.
More from Robert Kennedy
All quotes βElections remind us not only of the rights but the responsibilities of citizenship in a democracy.
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Within the United States, we have put great emphasis upon political freedoms. Because it has been our experience that these freedoms can lead to others.
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It is one thing to open job opportunities. It is another to train people to fill them, or to persuade American enterprise to seek Negro as well as white applicants.
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Our attitude towards immigration reflects our faith in the American ideal. We have always believed it possible for men and women who start at the bottom to rise as far as the talent and energy allow. Neither race nor place of birth should affect their chances.
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The Gross National Product measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country. It measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile, and it can tell us everything about America - except whether we are proud to be Americans.
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