Grace Lee Taught Us – Inspirational Quotes to Remember Grace Lee Boggs 1915-2015

Earlier this week, Grace Lee Boggs, activist, philosopher, and civil rights icon known for her work in Detroit’s communities, passed away at the age of 100. Members of the activist and Asian American communities all across the nation came together to celebrate and remember her life as one of the earliest Asian American activists in the civil rights movement, including President Obama. Throughout her life, she’s been the subject of countless interviews and media, including a documentary you can stream on pbs, and as a result has amassed a figurative library of inspirational and thought-provoking quotes. Here are a few that resonated with us:

On personal responsibility

“You don’t choose the times you live in, but you do choose who you want to be. And you do choose how you think.”

On social responsibility

“You cannot change any society unless you take responsibility for it, unless you see yourself as belonging to it, and responsible for changing it.”

On treating activism as a way of life

“activism can be the journey rather than the arrival;”

On rebelling with a purpose

“Rebellions tend to be negative, to denounce and expose the enemy without providing a positive vision of a new future…A revolution is not just for the purpose of correcting past injustices, a revolution involves a projection of man/woman into the future…It begins with projecting the notion of a more human human being, i.e. a human being who is more advanced in the specific qualities which only human beings have – creativity, consciousness and self-consciousness, a sense of political and social responsibility.”

On love

“Love isn’t about what we did yesterday; it’s about what we do today and tomorrow and the day after”

Rest in Power Grace Lee Boggs 1915 – 2015. Follow the hashtag #GraceLeeTaughtMe to see how she impacted other members of out community

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