Quotes by Coretta Scott King

"Revenge and retaliation always perpetuate the cycle of anger, fear and violence."

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"As one whose husband and mother-in-law have died the victims of murder and assassination, I stand firmly and unequivocally opposed to the death penalty for those convicted of capital offenses... An evil deed is not redeemed by an evil deed of retaliation."

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"The failure to invest in youth reflects a lack of compassion and a colossal failure of common sense."

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"My story is a freedom song of struggle. It is about finding one's purpose, how to overcome fear and to stand up for causes bigger than one's self."

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"Freedom and justice cannot be parceled out in pieces to suit political convenience. I don't believe you can stand for freedom for one group of people and deny it to others."

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"Struggle is a never ending process. Freedom is never really won, you earn it and win it in every generation."

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"My story is a freedom song from within my soul. It is a guide to discovery, a vision of how even the worst pain and heartaches can be channeled into human monuments, impenetrable and everlasting."

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"Hate is too great a burden to bear. It injures the hater more than it injures the hated."

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"Mama and Daddy King represent the best in manhood and womanhood, the best in a marriage, the kind of people we are trying to become."

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"On Thanksgiving Night, 1942, when I was fifteen years old, white racists burned our house to the ground."

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"Women, if the soul of the nation is to be saved, I believe that you must become its soul."

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"Gay and lesbian people have families, and their families should have legal protection, whether by marriage or civil union."

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