Community Empowerment Quotes

“Be nice to people... maybe it'll be unappreciated, unreciprocated, or ignored, but spread the love anyway. We rise by lifting others.”
― Germany Kent

“Be transparent. Let's build a community that allows hard questions and honest conversations so we can stir up transformation in one another.”
― Germany Kent

“I want to take my gifts and talents and use what I've learned to share with the world. I want to make a contribution to the value of others.”
― Germany Kent

“It is interesting that there can be gun turn-ins and buy-backs in Black neighborhoods and at the same time there are gun shows on the other side of town. (excerpt from "How to Move Black America Forward")”
― Eddie Taylor, PhD

“anything is possible with the right tools and good friends”
― Toni Grant

“The existence of the corporation, as we have it with us today, was never dreamed of by the fathers . . .The corporation of today has invaded every department of business, and it’s powerful but invisible hand is felt in almost all activities of life . . . The effect of this change upon the American people is radical and rapid.

The individual is fast disappearing as a business factor and in his stead is this new device, the modern corporation . . . The influence of this change upon character cannot be overestimated. The businessman at one time gave his individuality, stamped his mental and moral characteristics upon the business he conducted . . .

Today the business once transacted by individuals in every community is in the control of corporations, and many of the men who once conducted an independent business are gathered into the organization, and all personal identity, and all individualities lost.”
― Robert Marion La Follette

“Do work that matters. Choose to participate in initiatives that will positively impact the world and help make a difference in your community.”
― Germany Kent

“Equity is not a finite resource.
Especially when we understand it
as love.”
― Joy Donnell, Show Us Your Fire

“Immerse yourself in a cause you're passionate about.”
― Germany Kent

“The Black Church was the place where slaves could meet to pray and worship God and plan for their liberation. (from... How to Move Black America Forward)”
― Eddie Taylor, PhD

“Race relations, when boiled down to the nitty-gritty, is about racist or prejudiced people and their relationship with, acceptance of, and welcoming of Black people. (from... How to Move Black America Forward)”
― Eddie Taylor, PhD

“The decision to integrate was based on the fact that Black America could save Major League Baseball. It would be the inclusion of Black baseball players that would bring life back to a dying pastime in America. (from... How to Move Black America Forward)”
― Eddie Taylor, PhD

“Being involved in the community helps to shape your thinking. The outreach in being a blessing to others is a resource for reflection and much gratitude.”
― Germany Kent

“Oftentimes the faith community historically has been on the wrong side, particularly as it relates to indigenous communities and sovereign nations who we are in relationship with. Today we decided to be on the right side.”
― Curtiss Paul DeYoung

“I reflect on Bicycle Bob Silverman, who prodded and pushed Montreal into being one of the best biking cities in the world. I think about Dan Buettner and the Blue Zones gang, who’ve shown entire cities of people how to live healthier and longer lives. I think about Bea Johnson, who through her passion and pint jar of trash has changed the way thousands of us view our garbage. I think about Dr. June McCarroll in California and Dadarao Bilhore in India – on their hands and knees – painting center lines and filling potholes, one by one, to make our roads safe.

These are people so passionate about changing some sliver of the world that they just rolled up their sleeves and dug in. They forged ahead without job title, majority vote, business card, salary, office, or political affiliation. Writer Thomas Friedman refers to these people as “leaders without authority.” Where do we find more?

Well, we can start by taking a selfie.
And listening to a pair of voices from the past.

Alexis de Tocqueville – a man absolutely smitten by democracy in America – reminds us that one of the beauties of living in a democracy is that policies aren’t decreed from on high by “church and state” but from the bottom up, by “village and congregation.”

And anthropologist Margaret Mead expounds, “never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”
― spike carlsen, A Walk Around the Block: Stoplight Secrets, Mischievous Squirrels, Manhole Mysteries & Other Stuff You See Every Day

“Community service leaders are people who would rather do things off-line that matter than online for show. ”
― Germany Kent

“As a youngster he n ever respected people that made it and left... It was much bigger for him. It wasn't, 'I'ma get some money and leave.' It was "I'ma achieve my goals and bring things that's bigger than music. I'm gonna be at the forefront of a movement.”
― Rob Kenner, The Marathon Don't Stop: The Life and Times of Nipsey Hussle

“Nipsey was an interesting combination of capitalist and activist on a scale that I don't think hip-hop has ever produced before. But you shine too bright, you see what they do to you.”
― Dan Charnas, The Big Payback: The History of the Business of Hip-Hop

“When we all lend a hand in helping in the community we improve everyone's quality of life.”
― Germany Kent

“Communities everywhere seek an evolution, not a revolution”
― Donna Maltz, Conscious Cures: Soulutions to 21st Century Pandemics

“Be proud to support a cause that you believe is a worthy mission because your dedication to promoting civic participation helps the community.”
― Germany Kent

“Universal healthcare, free education, access to decent and affordable housing, safe working conditions, and occupations that provide a sense of fulfillment and meaning are all pretty basic and fundamental concerns, yet, for far too many of us, what are really relatively unambitious requirements have become aspirations we can only dream of.”
― Emma Dabiri, What White People Can Do Next: From Allyship to Coalition

“Charitable initiatives drive the future of our neighborhoods.”
― Germany Kent

“Stay in your own lane, hustle hard, and use your service as a way to add value to the community.”
― Germany Kent

“Inspire hope and change, practice kindness, aspire to inspire others in your community and be the hero that you can't find in this world.”
― Germany Kent

“The old mantra holds that your roof is my terrace and my terrace is someone else’s roof. We live in a community and we are made for one another.”
― Soroosh Shahrivar, Tajrish

“I would tax unaccountable private land ownership through land value taxation, and use the proceeds to finance community buyouts. Unless they serve community in ways that local communities want, get the lairds to finance their own clearance!”
― Alastair McIntosh, Reforesting Scotland 68, Autumn/Winter 2023

“Creativity can be reclaimed as a collective, democratic force—one that transcends the individual and becomes a shared resource for community-led movements, grassroots innovation, and resistance to oppressive systems.”
― Frankie Saturn, You Are Creative: Free Yourself to Free the World

“If we're serious about rebuilding and restoring what was lost in our communities, in our families, in society, it really does start here. (Reclaiming the Black Church: A Call to Restore Leadership, Unity, and Purpose – blog)”
― Carlos Wallace

“The whole universe was alive with possibilities that could take us wherever we wanted to go if only we could embrace our collective strengths and work together to get there. If only we could leave small-minded beliefs behind. ...love triumphing was sometimes as simple [as] an individual choice to step away from hate.”
― Willa Reece, Wildwood Magic