She was an icon!
Over the course of her life, Coretta Scott King became a wife, a mother, a civil rights icon, a human rights activist, and keeper of her husband Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream of justice and equality. With her lifelong commitment to justice and peace, Coretta rose to become one of the world's most influential women leaders who left behind a great blueprint for generations of activists to follow.
Here are 10 quotes that show the many ways in which Coretta Scott King taught us all the power of love, persistence, and believing in something bigger than ourselves.
1. "It doesn't matter how strong your opinions are. If you don't use your power for positive change, you are, indeed, part of the problem.
2. "Love is such a powerful force. It's there for everyone to embrace-that kind of unconditional love for all of humankind. That is the kind of love that impels people to go into the community and try to change conditions for others, to take risks for what they believe in."
3. "Struggle is a never ending process. Freedom is never really won, you earn it and win it in every generation."
4. "I am convinced that the women of the world, united without any regard for national or racial dimensions, can become a most powerful force for international peace and brotherhood."
5. "When the heart is right, the mind and the body will follow."
6. "If you give your life to a cause in which you believe, and if it is right and just, and if your life comes to an end as a result of this, then your life could not have been spent in a more redemptive way."
7. "People need role models. They need to see examples of people in peoples' lives."
8. "I'm fulfilled in what I do. I never thought that a lot of money or fine clothes - the finer things of life - would make you happy. My concept of happiness is to be filled in a spiritual sense."
9. "I'm more determined than ever that my husband's dream will become a reality."
10. "Hate is too great a burden to bear. It injures the hater more than it injures the hated."
Thank you for all you've done for your community, and the world!