Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer's no. That's not America. Is there something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim American kid believing that he or she could be president?
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes that in America, there should be no discrimination against someone's religion and that anyone can aspire to leadership regardless of their background.
Colin Powell's quote touches on the core values of America, which should encompass acceptance and equality for all, regardless of faith. It challenges the notion that being a Muslim in America is inappropriate and encourages the belief that every child, including a seven-year-old Muslim American, has the right to dream of and aspire to be president, signifying hope and inclusivity in the American identity.
In practice
This quote can be used during a discussion on diversity and acceptance in schools.
Perpetual optimism is a force multiplier. I am talking about a gung-ho attitude that says 'we can change things here, we can achieve awesome goals, we can be the best. 'Spare me the grim litany of the 'realist;' give me the unrealistic aspirations of the optimist any day.
One of the fondest expressions around is that we can't be the world's policeman. But guess who gets called when suddenly someone needs a cop.
Success is the result of perfection, hard work, learning from failure, loyalty, and persistence.
If you get the dirty end of the stick, sharpen it and turn it into a useful tool.
High-quality early-childhood programs and health coverage have expanded, and the number of mentoring relationships for at-risk youth has risen dramatically. That progress is encouraging, but it's not evenly distributed.
As I've thought about gay marriage, I don't see any reason not to say that [couples] should be able to get married.
At the present moment, the security of coherent philosophy, which existed from Parmenides to Hegel, is lost.
Conventional economics is a form of brain damage. Economics is so fundamentally disconnected from the real world, it is destructive.
The unformed is not worse than the over-formed. The former is nothing; the latter is mere appearance. Real form presupposes real life.
Of all writings I love only that which is written with blood. Write with blood: and you will discover that blood is spirit.
It is true we have won all our wars, but we have paid for them. We don't want victories anymore.
When one of my Japanese teacups is broken, I imagine that the real cause was not the careless hand of a maid but the anxieties of the figures inhabiting the curves of that porcelain. Their grim decision to commit suicide doesn't shock me: they used the maid as one of us might use a gun.
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