26 Black History Month Quotes

February is Black History Month–also knowns as African American History month. Each year, millions of people celebrate the month as a time to reflect on black heritage, achievements, and important figures. Gearing up for your school’s Black History Month event, or looking for custom apparel to inspire your group? You’ve come to the right place! For some ideas, check out our Black History Month quotes below. If you see something that inspires you, personalize t-shirts for your whole group.

26 Black History Month Quotes

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

“If there is no struggle, there is no progress.” – Frederick Douglass

“Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.” – Booker T. Washington

“When they go low, we go high.” – Michelle Obama

“I have a dream.” – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

“God gives nothing to those who keep their arms crossed.” – African Proverb

“Yes, we can.” – Barack Obama

“Hate is too great a burden to bear. It injures the hater more than it injures the hated.” – Coretta Scott King

“Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly.” – Langston Hughes

“No matter how hard it get, stick your chest out, keep your head up, and handle it.” – Tupac

“Laundry is the only thing that should be separated by color.” – Unknown

“The time is always right to do what is right.” – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

“Don’t try to lessen yourself for the world; let the world catch up to you.” – Beyoncé

“I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” – Michael Jordan

“Whatever fear I have inside me, my desire to win is always stronger.” – Serena Williams

“Our nation is a rainbow – red, yellow, brown, black, and white – and we’re all precious in God’s sight.” – Jesse Jackson

“You is kind. You is smart. You is important.” –The Help

“The potential for greatness lives within each of us.” – Wilma Rudolph

“We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated.” – Maya Angelou

“Each person must live their life as a model for others.” – Rosa Parks

“Turn your wounds into wisdom.” – Oprah

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” – Barack Obama

“We can push ourselves further. We always have more to give.” – Simone Biles

“In times of crisis, the wise build bridges, while the foolish build barriers. We must find a way to look after one another as if we were one single tribe.” – T’Challa, Black Panther

“Every day, you have the power to choose our better history — by opening your hearts and minds, by speaking up for what you know is right.” – Michelle Obama

“Be happy in your own skin.” – Octavia Spencer