Marian Wright Edelman
Marian Wright Edelman
Marian Wright Edelmanis an American activist for the rights of children. She has been an advocate for disadvantaged Americans for her entire professional life. She is president and founder of the Children's Defense Fund...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionActivist
Date of Birth6 June 1939
CountryUnited States of America
children people social-justice
The future which we hold in trust for our own children will be shaped by our fairness to other people's children.
teacher children believe
Children must have at least one person who believes in them. It could be a counselor, a teacher, a preacher, a friend. It could be you. You never know when a little love, a little support will plant a small seed of hope.
dream rain acceptance
No person has the right to rain on your dreams.
parent problem incredibles
Luckily, I had incredible parents who, when they saw a problem, didn't say, "Why doesn't somebody do something?" They would say, "Why don't we do something?".
children
The question is not whether we can afford to invest in every child; it is whether we can afford not to.
children struggle light
It is so important not to let ourselves off the hook or to become apathetic or cynical by telling ourselves that nothing works or makes a difference. Every day, light your small candle.... The inaction and actions of many human beings over a long time contributed to the crises our children face, and it is the action and struggle of many human beings over time that will solve them-with God's help. So every day, light your small candle.
education community leaving
Education is for improving the lives of others and for leaving your community and world better than you found it.
believe tough i-believe
I'm tough in the sense that I believe as strongly in what I'm doing as anybody else believes in what they are doing.
inspirational kings thinking
Dr. King used to say, 'I was sitting in the back of the bus, but my mind was always up front.' Don't let anybody tell you that you can't do it. You aim high and you work very hard and now I think it's clear that you can be anything you want to.
people upset trying
I get very upset with all of the crowd seekers today, and people out there trying to get on TV. It ain't about you. It's about trying to make the world more just for everybody.
real mean trying
Be real. Try to do what you say, say what you mean, and be what you seem.
gun police different
You have to have a fundamental change in the culture of policing, and who is the police person. How do they change? How do you learn from England and the other places, or Australia? In England, they don't carry guns on the whole. It's a different kind of mentality that does not demonize, and it's justified on race and income and class.
inspiring perseverance work
Don't feel entitled to anything you didn't sweat and struggle for.
trying tough hunger
As [Martin Luther] King said, it never cost anybody a dime to integrate the lunch counters. When you start talking about trying to deal with jobs and hunger and things that require investment, then that's really the tough stuff, because everybody wants to do right if it doesn't cost them anything.