Deeyah Khan Quotes

There are plenty of reasons not to put up with the world as it is.

Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.

The better we understand how identities and power work together from one context to another, the less likely our movements for change are to fracture.

I just wish that every responsible and concerned person would step back regardless of race and gender and just take a closer look at what's really going on in the world today, and say enough is enough!

I'm not sure I'm trying to communicate a message. I'm just trying to be part of the movement away from the unacceptable present.

We must always refill and ensure there is a critical mass of leaders and activists committed to nonviolence and racial and economic justice who will keep seeding and building transforming movements.

Do something that makes a difference - because, by God, there's a lot to make you angry.

No change can come if those who are impacted the most by discrimination are not willing to stand up for themselves.

I like to be able to raise people's consciousness, yes. And to remind that those of us involved in the receiving end of the oppression, we have a duty.

Collectively, we activists are essential to advancing U.S. policy to help empower marginalized people to lift themselves and their communities out of poverty for good.

There are many things we do not want about the world. Let us not just mourn them. Let us change them.

The great are only great because we are on our knees. Let us rise!

Death, torture and prison are part of daily life for the youth of Iran. They are not like us, my friends and I at their age; they are not scared. They are not what we were. They hold hands and scream: 'Don't be afraid! Don't be afraid! We are together!' They understand that no one will give them their rights; they must go get them.

No one who passively endures an injustice against himself has the material in him to struggle for the rights of others. The one who patiently forbears becomes an accessory to the injustice done to others. He who resists the injustice which he himself meets can open up the way to a higher right for others.

It is people's willingness to take personal risks and confront the powerful by daring to speak the truth, not the truth itself, that ultimately leads to change.

Social justice is what drives me; it's why I'm here.

Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did, and it never will.

If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.

Collective action is a means of power, a means by which individuals can more fully realize their individual values.

People and systems count on our silence to keep us exactly where we are.... in a world that wants us to whisper, I choose to yell.

If any group wants to not be disenfranchised, then understanding that there's going to be a learning curve for people who have disenfranchised them is important.

I think we can topple the patriarchy by using our voices to speak out against things that aren't right and that we don't agree with. I think for people who are not people of color or members of the LGBT community, it is being an ally and being an advocate in spaces that people of color or members of the LGBT community can't really get into.

I had the blessing of opportunity. You need the folks in the boardroom who have consciences and the people in the streets who can picket at the right time.

The protestor I think will speak up for the world's poorest.

I think something that's really important to me is trying to do what I can from my position of power that comes with having a social media platform to dismantle certain systems that I think are really gross and harmful.