Less than a century ago the laborer had no rights, little or no respect, and led a life which was socially submerged and barren.

The great temptation of life and the great tragedy of life is that so often we allow the without of our lives to absorb the within of our lives.

This note was a promise that all men, yes black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Enlarged material powers spell enlarged peril if there is not proportionate growth of the soul.

We are prone to judge success by the index of our salaries or the size of our automobiles, rather than by the quality of our service and relationship to humanity.

A court order can only declare rights; it can never thoroughly deliver them. And only when people themselves begin to act, are rights which are on thin paper given life blood. And so the Negro must supplement all that is done through legislation, through voting, and through the courts with non-violent direct action.