Maya Angelou

I find it interesting that the meanest life, the poorest existence, is attributed to God’s will, but as human beings become more affluent, as their living standard and style begin to ascend the material scale, God descends the scale of responsibility at a commensurate speed.

There is nothing so pitiful as a young cynic because he has gone from knowing nothing to believing nothing.

If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude. Don’t complain.

Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can’t practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.

All men are prepared to accomplish the incredible if their ideals are threatened.

The sadness of the women’s movement is that they don’t allow the necessity of love. See, I don’t personally trust any revolution where love is not allowed.

If you’re someone who genuinely believes that women don’t deserve or aren’t as much as men, you’re like the plague. On the big history chart, you’re the plague … it’s just pointless and deadly.

We won’t unlock opportunities for young women and girls unless we can change the mindset of every family and community. To achieve this, it cannot just be women who speak up for girls.

My first instinct is great pride for all of us as women who are finding our voices.

Today, be the basass girl you were too lazy to be yesterday.

Little girls think it’s necessary to put all their business on MySpace and Facebook, and I think it’s a shame… I’m all about mystery.

It’s pretty clear that if men were having babies we’d have different policies.

I am a woman with thoughts and questions and sh*t to say. I say if I’m beautiful. I say if I’m strong. You will not determine my story – I will.

I wouldn’t say I’m a feminist. I think that would be, maybe, going too far.

To all my goddesses in the world spreading love and light, power and radiance. Never stop being brilliant!!

As I grow and I get older I’m realising more and more that there’s such a beautiful, sensual power that we have as women.

No country can ever truly flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contributions of half its citizens.

I am a Woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal Woman, that’s me.

I never identified with the feminist movement in a strong way. I just kind of lived it. I didn’t politicize it. I didn’t follow any written rules to what it meant to be a feminist. I had my own sense of what was right and wrong.

So early in our lives we are shushed. And not just directly shushed but sometimes in our lives we’re treated too preciously. We may have a father that loves us and treats us like a doll. They don’t treat us like real beings and equal partners.

[Feminism] means that you believe in the equality of the sexes in every way.