Shirin Ebadi Quotes

Liberty lives in protest and democracy prospers under conditions of change. When we travel about the world and come to a country whose newspapers are filled with bad news we feel that liberty lives in that land. When we come to a country whose newspapers are filled with good news, we feel differently.

Speak, speak, speak, & remember that whenever anyone's liberty to speak is denied, your liberty is denied also, & your place is where the attack is.

In this time when a citizenry applauds the liberation of a country as it lives in fear of its own freedom, when people all over the country fear reprisal if they use their right to free speech, it is time to get angry. It is time to get fierce.

The values that we share - freedom of speech, freedom of religious practice, freedom for civil society, free and fair elections, all the innovation that's been created through a market-based economy - those things are ultimately going to be the path for us to continue into a better future. I hope that, despite some of the challenges we have, that people appreciate that.

We are not seeking revolution. We just want democracy.

Therefore, until the day I die, I am going to do what I can, regardless of the cost to me, to try to stop this awful corruption that is destroying our beloved democracy.

That President Mohammad Khatami's policies have been blocked is the bitterest incident in the contemporary Iranian history. This means that the wishes of millions of people who voted for Khatami and called for freedom and justice have been ignored... Why should cultural activities and journalism be so risky in Iran?

The people want to go back to the time when democracy was in full bloom.

Elections shall be open, free and equal, and no power, civil or military, shall at any time interfere to prevent an un-trammeled exercise of the right of suffrage.

This is one of the finest expressions of U. S. democracy at work.

If there is liberty, if there is democracy, in this country, it will stand or fall with the right of the minority to express to the full force of language its opposition in public to the policies of the government. And it will stand or fall with the courage of the minority so to express itself.

I have an unyielding belief that all people yearn for certain things: the ability to speak your mind and have a say in how you are governed, confidence in the rule of law and the equal administration of law; government that is transparent and doesn’t steal from the people; the freedom to live as you choose. These are not just American ideas; they are Human Rights.

Somehow we must be able to show people that democracy is not about words, but action.

When I grow up I’m going to change the government.

Real freedom will require many changes in the nation’s political and social philosophies and institutions.

Authoritarian regimes in countries with weak, uninformed, or repressed civil societies will be less susceptible to transparency’s pressures.

Well, protest is central to the evolution of black American culture. It was protest that really finally won our freedom for us. Beyond that, it's always interesting to note that it expanded the idea of democracy.

I want to be proud of this country, but when aspects of our policy don't align with my ethics, I want to protest them and try to change them.

The Arab Spring, nobody's in the streets demonstrating for radical Islam; they're in the streets with a window of democracy. They want our political reform, our social justice, and our economic opportunity.

We will continue our protest with our course on free elections.

I've carried witty banners against laws that would curtail my freedoms.

We live in a democratic country, and in a democracy freedom of speech is for the people and also for the leaders.

Peaceful protest is a hallmark of our democracy. It has been in impetus for social change throughout our history.

Protest is political. It is as political as what our conception of America is.

If you value the democratic process, you have to value the protection of political speech.