My family is no different from yours. We may be different from the geography that we come from. Some of you all may pray differently than I do, some of you all may be from a different ethnicity, but we all have the same story.
Cory BookerRead
I reject the idea that the guy who comes out of Yale and goes to work in the projects in Newark is good, and the guy who goes to work for a white-shoe law firm is bad. We're all mountain rangers. We all have peaks and valleys.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes that no one's career path defines their worth; everyone experiences highs and lows.
Cory Booker's quote challenges simplistic ideas of success and morality by suggesting that both paths—working in challenging environments and prestigious firms—hold value. He compares life to mountain ranges, where everyone has their own peaks of success and valleys of struggle, highlighting that the worth of a person cannot be judged solely by their job title or workplace.
Themes
SuccessLifePerspectiveCareerValues
In practice
Example use cases
In a graduation speech to inspire young adults considering their future careers.
More from Cory Booker
All quotes →When I was just a twenty-something, I came to Newark, and I found a connection to the city in a spiritual way. I found a connection here and people here that reminded me so much of my roots and my own family.
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I think Newark has been in the crosshairs in every generation of the fight to achieve America. And I think Newark is a city that's at that crossroads still.
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I am the descendant of slaves, of people that were born from a slave and a slave master.
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Let your critics make you humble, and your enemies make you wise. Learn from every stumble but let nothing keep you down, for you were born to rise!
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The drug war has been a war where the direct casualties have primarily been America's poor; America's minorities; and often, unfortunately, America's vulnerable, in terms of people with disease and addiction and mental health.
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