I ran for the presidency, despite hopeless odds, to demonstrate the sheer will and refusal to accept the status quo.
Interpretation
This quote speaks to the importance of perseverance in the face of adversity and the desire to challenge existing norms.
Shirley Chisholm's quote encapsulates her determination to run for the presidency against overwhelming obstacles. It highlights a commitment to challenging the status quo and illustrates how sheer will and courage can inspire change, regardless of the odds faced. By standing up and fighting for her ambitions, Chisholm not only sought personal achievement but also aimed to pave the way for others to follow, reinforcing the idea that challenging societal norms is a vital part of progress.
In practice
This quote can be used in a motivational speech to encourage individuals to pursue their dreams despite challenges.
I was the first American citizen to be elected to Congress in spite of the double drawbacks of being female and having skin darkened by melanin. When you put it that way, it sounds like a foolish reason for fame. In a just and free society it would be foolish. That I am a national figure because I was the first person in 192 years to be at once a congressman, black and a woman proves, I think, that our society is not yet either just or free.
I stand before you today to repudiate the ridiculous notion that the American people will not vote for qualified candidates simply because he is not white or because she is not a male.
The emotional, sexual, and psychological stereotyping of females begins when the doctor says, 'It's a girl.'
I know that millions of Americans from all walks of life agree with me that leadership does not mean putting the ear to the ground to follow public opinion, but to have the vision of what is necessary and the courage to make it possible.
Of course laws will not eliminate prejudice from the hearts of human beings. But that is no reason to allow prejudice to continue to be enshrined in our laws - to perpetuate injustice through inaction.
I want history to remember me... not as the first black woman to have made a bid for the presidency of the United States, but as a black woman who lived in the 20th century and who dared to be herself. I want to be remembered as a catalyst for change in America.
To his enemies the householder must be a hero. Them he must resist. That is the duty of the householder. He must not sit down in a corner and weep, and talk nonsense about non-resistance. If he does not show himself a hero to his enemies he has not done his duty.
Battles are won, not with weapons, but with God. They are won where the way leads to the cross.
Most people would have given up when faced with all the criticism I've received over the years.
I have been asked, politely and not so politely, why I am myself. This is an accounting any woman will be called on to give if she asserts her will.
Tonight, I ask for your prayers for all those who grieve, for the children whose worlds have been shattered, for all whose sense of safety and security has been threatened. And I pray they will be comforted by a power greater than any of us, spoken through the ages in Psalm 23: "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me."
You have to make more noise than anybody else, you have to make yourself more obtrusive than anybody else, you have to fill all the papers more than anybody else, in fact you have to be there all the time and see that they do not snow you under.
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