In America, I'm a foreigner because of my Korean heritage. In Asia, because I was born in America, I'm a foreigner. I'm always a foreigner.
Margaret ChoRead
It is tragic that people who are incarcerated are unable to vote. They are probably the most important voices to listen to because they can tell us what we need to change.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Incarcerated individuals should have the right to vote as their experiences provide vital insights for societal change.
Margaret Cho's quote highlights the irony that people who are incarcerated, often marginalized and silenced, are denied the fundamental right to vote. This lack of voting rights not only strips them of their agency but also deprives society of essential perspectives on systemic issues that need reform. Listening to their voices could lead to meaningful changes in policies and practices that affect not only the incarcerated but society as a whole.
Themes
Voting RightsIncarcerationSocial ChangeMarginalized VoicesReform
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech advocating for criminal justice reform.
More from Margaret Cho
All quotes →Being called ugly and fat and disgusting to look at from the time I could barely understand what the words meant has scarred me so deep inside that I have learned to hunt, stalk, claim, own and defend my own loveliness.
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I've spent so much time feeling ugly and being treated as ugly as a result. But I changed my attitude and said, “I’m beautiful because I love everybody as much as I can. I’m beautiful because I have wonderful friends. And I’m beautiful because I say I am. I’ve earned it, and I’m gonna be it.
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If public figures came out of the closet, then the LGBT kids who saw them on TV would feel safe, before they even knew why they felt dangerous. Maybe if enough people came out of the closet, gay kids would never feel dangerous. Maybe we could have a world where we could all just live. We may not all agree, but why can't we just all live?
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I was like, Am I gay? Am I straight? And I realized...I'm just slutty. Where's my parade?
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One place that I really feel comfortable is being a comedienne. I'm very socially inept. There's so many things that I can not do in life, and this is, like, the one thing that I have mastery over. It's my world. And anybody who's coming to the show, it's like they're coming because they know that this is my world.
Margaret ChoRead
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