Throughout history, black women have been a powerful force for change, resilience, and inspiration. Their words have moved nations, sparked movements, and touched countless lives. This collection of 100 inspirational quotes showcases the wisdom, strength, and insight of remarkable quotes by black women from various fields including politics, literature, entertainment, sports, and activism.
1. “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” – Alice Walker
2. “I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear.” – Rosa Parks
3. “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” – Maya Angelou
4. “I’m not afraid of storms, for I’m learning how to sail my ship.” – Louisa May Alcott
5. “The only way to survive is by taking care of one another.” – Grace Lee Boggs
6. “You can’t make decisions based on fear and the possibility of what might happen.” – Michelle Obama
7. “I had to make my own living and my own opportunity. But I made it! Don’t sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them.” – Madam C.J. Walker
8. “Hate is too great a burden to bear. It injures the hater more than it injures the hated.” – Coretta Scott King
9. “You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou
10. “The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” – Amelia Earhart
11. “I’m not interested in or attracted to what people say can’t be done. I’m attracted to the ‘what if.'” – Ava DuVernay
12. “If you’re always trying to be normal you will never know how amazing you can be.” – Maya Angelou
13. “I am my best work – a series of road maps, reports, recipes, doodles, and prayers from the front lines.” – Audre Lorde
14. “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world.” – Harriet Tubman
15. “You’ve got to learn to leave the table when love’s no longer being served.” – Nina Simone
16. “When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful.” – Malala Yousafzai
17. “I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.” – Audre Lorde
18. “Don’t let anyone rob you of your imagination, your creativity, or your curiosity.” – Mae Jemison
19. “The most effective way to do it, is to do it.” – Amelia Earhart
20. “If you don’t see a clear path for what you want, sometimes you have to make it yourself.” – Mindy Kaling
21. “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou
22. “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” – Maya Angelou
23. “I have learned not to allow rejection to move me.” – Cicely Tyson
24. “The thing you fear most has no power. Your fear of it is what has the power.” – Oprah Winfrey
25. “If you’re not making someone else’s life better, then you’re wasting your time.” – Will Smith
26. “I am deliberate and afraid of nothing.” – Audre Lorde
27. “You have to believe in yourself when no one else does – that makes you a winner right there.” – Venus Williams
28. “You don’t make progress by standing on the sidelines, whimpering and complaining. You make progress by implementing ideas.” – Shirley Chisholm
29. “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
30. “You can’t be that kid standing at the top of the waterslide, overthinking it. You have to go down the chute.” – Tina Fey
31. “It’s not the load that breaks you down, it’s the way you carry it.” – Lena Horne
32. “I’m not entangled in shaping my work according to other people’s views of how I should have done it.” – Toni Morrison
33. “I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a catcher’s mitt on both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.” – Maya Angelou
34. “If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one.” – Dolly Parton
35. “Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.” – Maya Angelou
36. “I have stood on a mountain of no’s for one yes.” – Barbara Elaine Smith
37. “Doubt is a killer. You just have to know who you are and what you stand for.” – Jennifer Lopez
38. “I am learning every day to allow the space between where I am and where I want to be to inspire me and not terrify me.” – Tracee Ellis Ross
39. “Dreams are lovely. But they are just dreams. Fleeting, ephemeral, pretty. But dreams do not come true just because you dream them. It’s hard work that makes things happen. It’s hard work that creates change.” – Shonda Rhimes
40. “You are the one that possesses the keys to your being. You carry the passport to your own happiness.” – Diane von Furstenberg
41. “I’ve come to believe that each of us has a personal calling that’s as unique as a fingerprint – and that the best way to succeed is to discover what you love and then find a way to offer it to others in the form of service, working hard, and also allowing the energy of the universe to lead you.” – Oprah Winfrey
42. “Courage allows the successful woman to fail and learn powerful lessons from the failure so that in the end, she didn’t fail at all.” – Maya Angelou
43. “If you’re comfortable with yourself, then you’ll look beautiful. If you’re not feeling comfortable with yourself, than no matter how beautiful you are, you’re not going to seem beautiful to others.” – Bianca Frazier
44. “I am not lucky. You know what I am? I am smart, I am talented, I take advantage of the opportunities that come my way and I work really, really hard. Don’t call me lucky. Call me a badass.” – Shonda Rhimes
45. “Your willingness to look at your darkness is what empowers you to change.” – Iyanla Vanzant
46. “If you prioritize yourself, you are going to save yourself.” – Gabrielle Union
47. “You are your best thing.” – Toni Morrison
48. “Sometimes you’ve got to let everything go – purge yourself. If you are unhappy with anything… whatever is bringing you down, get rid of it. Because you’ll find that when you’re free, your true creativity, your true self comes out.” – Tina Turner
49. “You can waste your lives drawing lines. Or you can live your life crossing them.” – Shonda Rhimes
50. “I am a woman with thoughts and questions and shit to say. I say if I’m beautiful. I say if I’m strong. You will not determine my story – I will.” – Amy Schumer
51. “Define success on your own terms, achieve it by your own rules, and build a life you’re proud to live.” – Anne Sweeney
52. “I realized that I don’t have to be perfect. All I have to do is show up and enjoy the messy, imperfect, and beautiful journey of my life.” – Kerry Washington
53. “You have to be willing to sacrifice what you are for what you can become.” – Oprah Winfrey
54. “I’ve learned that making a ‘living’ is not the same thing as ‘making a life’.” – Maya Angelou
55. “I think the truth of the matter is, people who end up as ‘first’ don’t actually set out to be first. They set out to do something they love and it just so happens that they are the first to do it.” – Condoleezza Rice
56. “I am not a victim. No matter what I have been through, I’m still here. I have a history of victory.” – Viola Davis
57. “There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” – Maya Angelou
58. “You can’t let praise or criticism get to you. It’s a weakness to get caught up in either one.” – Tanith Lee
59. “Success doesn’t come from what you do occasionally. It comes from what you do consistently.” – Marie Forleo
60. “If you’re always waiting for the right time, it’ll never happen. You have to make the time right.” – Shonda Rhimes
61. “Don’t settle for average. Bring your best to the moment. Then, whether it fails or succeeds, at least you know you gave all you had.” – Angela Bassett
62. “The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them.” – Ida B. Wells
63. “I’m not afraid of storms, for I’m learning how to sail my ship.” – Mary Louise Alcott
64. “Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you.” – Oprah Winfrey
65. “If you don’t like being a doormat then get off the floor.” – Al Anon
66. “Never be limited by other people’s limited imaginations.” – Dr. Mae Jemison
67. “If you are silent about your pain, they’ll kill you and say you enjoyed it.” – Zora Neale Hurston
68. “I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear.” – Rosa Parks
69. “We may encounter many defeats but we must not be defeated.” – Maya Angelou
70. “I’m not afraid to take risks or go off on my own.” – Beyoncé
71. “If you don’t get out of the box you’ve been raised in, you won’t understand how much bigger the world is.” – Angelina Jolie
72. “Take criticism seriously, but not personally. If there is truth or merit in the criticism, try to learn from it. Otherwise, let it roll right off you.” – Hillary Clinton
73. “I don’t have time to be classification of a good or bad feminist. I’m just here to get shit done.” – Shonda Rhimes
74. “As you become more clear about who you really are, you’ll be better able to decide what is best for you – the first time around.” – Oprah Winfrey
75. “If you don’t like the way the world is, you change it. You have an obligation to change it. You just do it one step at a time.” – Marian Wright Edelman
76. “I’m convinced that the negative has power. It lives. And if you allow it to perch in your house, in your mind, in your life, it can take you over. So when the negative comes to you, and it will, start telling it about the good things that are in your life and why you’re so grateful.” – Maya Angelou
77. “You can fall, but you can rise also.” – Angelique Kidjo
78. “The most disrespected person in America is the black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman.” – Malcolm X
79. “You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness, but still, like air, I’ll rise!” – Maya Angelou
80. “I am not wrong: Wrong is not my name. My name is my own my own my own.” – June Jordan
81. “I am a feminist, and what that means to me is much the same as the meaning of the fact that I am Black: it means that I must undertake to love myself and to respect myself as though my very life depends upon self-love and self-respect.” – June Jordan
82. “You don’t have to be fearless. Just don’t let fear stop you.” – Charlie Jane Anders
83. “I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.” – Audre Lorde
84. “If you’re always trying to be normal you will never know how amazing you can be.” – Maya Angelou
85. “The thing women have yet to learn is nobody gives you power. You just take it.” – Roseanne Barr
86. “I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear.” – Rosa Parks
87. “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.” – Maya Angelou
88. “I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.” – Louisa May Alcott
89. “I have learned that 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
90. “You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.” – Maya Angelou
91. “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” – Alice Walker
92. “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou
93. “If you’re always trying to be normal, you will never know how amazing you can be.” – Maya Angelou
94. “Don’t let anyone rob you of your imagination, your creativity, or your curiosity.” – Mae Jemison
95. “You have to believe in yourself when no one else does – that makes you a winner right there.” – Venus Williams
96. “I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear.” – Rosa Parks
97. “The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” – Amelia Earhart
98. “You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.” – Maya Angelou
99. “I’m not afraid of storms, for I’m learning how to sail my ship.” – Louisa May Alcott
100. “The only way to survive is by taking care of one another.” – Grace Lee Boggs
These quotes from remarkable black women span generations and touch on various themes including perseverance, self-belief, creativity, and social justice. They serve as a testament to the wisdom, strength, and resilience of black women throughout history and in contemporary times. May these words inspire, motivate, and empower readers to face their challenges with courage and to pursue their dreams with determination.
