25 Inspirational Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will forever be remembered as one of the most visible spokespeople of the Civil Rights Movement. His peaceful but powerful words helped bring hope and healing through his message of equality for all people, regardless of race. Here are some of the most inspirational Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. quotes about education, love, equality, hope, freedom, religion, and activism.

Dr. Martin Luther King Quotes On Education

1. “Intelligence plus character — that is the goal of true education.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “The Purpose of Education” from Morehouse College student newspaper, The Maroon Tiger (1947)
2. “If we are not careful, our colleges will produce a group of close-minded, unscientific, illogical propagandists, consumed with immoral acts. Be careful, ‘brethren!’ Be careful, teachers!”― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “The Purpose of Education” from Morehouse College student newspaper, The Maroon Tiger (1947)
3. “Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.”― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Dr. Martin Luther King Quotes About Love

4. “Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.”― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Strength to Love (1963)
5. “I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant.”― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, Oslo, Norway (1964)

Dr. Martin Luther King Quotes About Racism

6. “I have decided to stick to love… Hate is too great a burden to bear.”― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches
7. “Let no man pull you so low as to hate him.”― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., A Knock at Midnight: Inspiration from the Great Sermons of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.

Dr. Martin Luther King Quotes About Faith And Religion

8. “Science investigates; religion interprets. Science gives man knowledge, which is power; religion gives man wisdom, which is control. Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values. The two are not rivals.”― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “A Tough Mind and a Tender Heart” sermon (August 30, 1959)
9. “Faith is taking the first step even when you can’t see the whole staircase.”― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Inspirational Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes About Hope

10. “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.
11. “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Strength to Love (1963)
12. “Out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “I Have A Dream” speech, Washington, D.C. (August 28, 1963)
13. “Be a bush if you can’t be a tree. If you can’t be a highway, just be a trail. If you can’t be a sun, be a star. For it isn’t by size that you win or fail. Be the best of whatever you are.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Speech before a group of students at Barratt Junior High School in Philadelphia (October 26, 1967)
14. “We’ve got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn’t matter with me now because I’ve been to the mountaintop… I’ve looked over and I’ve seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight that we as a people will get to the promised land.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech (April 3, 1968)

Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes On Equality And Justice

15. “True peace is not merely the absence of tension; it is the presence of justice.”  — Stride Toward Freedom (1958)
16. “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “Letter from Birmingham Jail” (April 16, 1963)
17. “We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor, it must be demanded by the oppressed.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “Letter From Birmingham Jail” (April 16, 1963)

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes On Activism

18. “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” ― Martin Luther King Jr., I Have a Dream: Writings and Speeches That Changed the World
19. “There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it is right.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and Speeches
20. “We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “I Have A Dream” speech in Washington, D.C. (August 28, 1963)
21. “The contemporary tendency in our society is to base our distribution on scarcity, which has vanished, and to compress our abundance into the overfed mouths of the middle and upper classes until they gag with superfluity. If democracy is to have breadth of meaning, it is necessary to adjust this inequity. It is not only moral, but it is also intelligent. We are wasting and degrading human life by clinging to archaic thinking.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community? (1967)
22. “The time is always right to do what is right.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Oberlin College commencement speech (1965)
23. “For when people get caught up with that which is right and they are willing to sacrifice for it, there is no stopping point short of victory.” ― Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech (April 3, 1968)
24. “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” ― Martin Luther King Jr.
25. “All we say to America is, ‘Be true to what you said on paper.’ If I lived in China or even Russia, or any totalitarian country, maybe I could understand the denial of certain basic First Amendment privileges because they hadn’t committed themselves to that over there. But somewhere I read of the freedom of assembly. Somewhere I read of the freedom of speech. Somewhere I read of the freedom of the press. Somewhere I read that the greatness of America is the right to protest for right.” Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech (April 3, 1968)

Inspirational Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Quotes

Reading through these quotes is a great way to discover inspiration, especially during Black History Month. What did you think about our list of inspirational Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. quotes? Did we miss any of your favorites? Please let us know in the comments.