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
Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total; of all those acts will be written the history of this generation.
Interpretation
What this quote means
While few people can shape history on a grand scale, everyone can contribute to meaningful change in their own way.
Robert Kennedy's quote emphasizes that history is not only made by a select few but is the cumulative result of many individual actions. Each person's efforts, no matter how small, contribute to the larger narrative of their time, highlighting the importance of personal responsibility and the impact of collective actions on societal change.
Themes
ChangeHistoryActionResponsibilityCollective Effort
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a speech about community service to inspire people to take action.
More from Robert Kennedy
All quotes →Elections 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.
Robert KennedyRead
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.
Robert KennedyRead
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.
Robert KennedyRead
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