A man who won't die for something is not fit to live.

As I like to say to the people in Montgomery: "The tension in this city is not between white people and Negro people. The tension is, at bottom, between justice and injustice, between the forces of light and the forces of darkness.

Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and establish such creative tension that a community that has consistently refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue.

The Universe is on the side of Justice

We have waited for more than three hundred and forty years for our constitutional and God-given rights.

The only weapon that we have in our hands this evening is the weapon of protest. That's all.

Like anybody, I would like to have a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will.