Progress is possible, but it is fragile - and across our country, the battles for our most basic civil rights rage on.
Interpretation
Progress in civil rights is achievable but delicate, requiring constant vigilance and effort.
Stacey Abrams highlights the idea that while we can make significant advancements in civil rights, these gains are not permanent and must be defended against ongoing challenges. This quote underscores the fragility of progress and the need for active participation in the fight for equity and justice in society.
In practice
This quote can be used in a speech at a civil rights rally to inspire activists.
I grew up one of six children with working-class parents in the Deep South. My mother was a college librarian, and my father worked in a shipyard. I never saw them balance a checkbook, but they kept a roof over our heads and got all six of us into college.
I do not Google myself, I do not read comments, and I barely look myself in the eye when I look in the mirror.
My being a black woman is not a deficit. It is a strength. Because I could not be where I am had I not overcome so many other barriers. Which means you know I'm relentless, you know I'm persistent, and you know I'm smart.
The basis for sustainable progress is legal protections grounded in an awareness of how identity has been used to deny opportunity.
I like to solve problems. I know it is a skill set, but it's also an obligation. I grew up with parents who believe that you don't simply complain: you try to find solutions and fix what's in front of you.
Here in Georgia, we continue to grapple with our own vestiges of hate. The image carved into Stone Mountain, like Confederate monuments across this state, stand as constant reminders of racism, intolerance, and division.
You've got to be closer to the edge than ever to win. That means sometimes you go over the edge, and I don't mean driving, either.
When I am in the battlefield, I love it more than my wedding night with the most beautiful of women
You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.
What they forget is that, from Ancient Greece on, the people who returned from battle were either dead on their shields or stronger, despite and because of their scars.
I don't have a feeling of inferiority. Never had. I'm as good as anybody, but no better.
Don't be scared to look for help. Depression is real... It's crazy, and all these guys, us athletes, that keep thinking we're superheroes. I like to think I'm a superhero, but superheroes got to fight their demons, too, sometimes.
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