James Mirrlees Quotes

Without an advocate for the poor, without a new state of mind in America, the country lies on the brink of anarchy.

I'm not quite sure precisely when social and political activism became a visible brand of my DNA, but it seems to me that I was born into it. It is hard to be born into the experience in the world of poverty and not develop some instinct for survival and resistance to those things that oppress you.

You can complain about problems, and you can suffer from the ramifications of issues that are social in nature and impact you, but the best thing you can do is get off your couch, get out of your home and go do something about it.

We've got to help our community out. We've got to help Baltimore out, because it's a lot of things that have been handed down in our society that we're dealing with.

I have seen girls tackle every single big problem from cancer to lead poisoning to climate change to homelessness to bullying in schools. There is literally no problem that we can't solve.

When all you can think of is your own personal problems, you have nothing to give to your society. If you're trying to figure out where your next meal is coming from, you can't go march on Washington.

The other aspect is that you become much more aware of the structural problems that pertain to that continent. You feel the need to act to try and solve them.

I believe in the power of media. I really do. It's my soapbox. And I do have an agenda, because I'm enraged by the limitations forced on people - by poverty, oppression, hatred, fear - and I'm saddened by the kind of loss we all experienced due to the contributions that people cannot make because of their circumstances.

I have lectured at the U.N. and travelled widely, giving lectures on human rights and gender inequalities in universities. But this is a life I do not wish to live. I don't want to be a showcase, I want to be in a battlefield where I can stand beside the oppressed and the poor.

I do not want to speak about overpopulation or birth control, but I think education is the way to give new impetus to the poverty question.

In community work, you reach some people, but in writing, I can reach many more people, not only in exploring issues of domestic violence, but also by showing the importance of strong women in communities.

I have an activist's desire to improve people's lives.

People who have been empowered by positive change are demanding quick solutions to current problems.

I believe that if you show people the problems and you show them the solutions they will be moved to act.

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

Liberals have to get more comfortable with dealing with the poor as they actually are. I admire their refusal to look down on the least among us, but at some level, that can become an excuse to never really look at the problem at all.

Public service and community organizing and movement building is such a part of my DNA that it's really hard to separate it.

The only difference between Compton and other cities is the ZIP Code, you know, and the mindset - it's just really about challenging people to take ownership of our community.

I don't think it's my job, single-handedly, to fix anything. I think it's my job to have a vision and have a plan that is reasonable and workable and get as many people to the table to effect change as possible.

Whether that be starting conversations about environmental conservation or taking part in being a voice for people who don't have a voice, I just want to help people however I can.

America certainly is a great country with plenty of freedoms, but there are a lot of systemic issues that need to change.

Oxfam is part of a global movement for social justice. We mainly work to fight for economic and social rights for people without a voice or people who are oppressed.

I started calling anti-child labor organizations, asking how I could help. They told me a kid couldn't make any difference, so I decided to start a movement for young people to fight child labor, and to prove them wrong.

Alleviating suffering of the most marginalized communities must begin with assessing the needs of entire communities and allowing the most marginalized to lead the strategy. My belief is those closest to the pain are closest to the solution.

I want to turn momentum on traffic. I want to make in a dent in homelessness on the way to eradicating it on our streets. But there's always something else to do tomorrow. And you have to be at peace knowing you're not going to finish it all.