#freedom

I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations. ↗

— James Madison

#constitution #freedom-of-speech #freedom-of-thought #politics #freedom

Rebellion to tyranny is obedience to God. ↗

— Thomas Jefferson

#oppression #tyranny #freedom

You can't take the sky from me. ↗

— Joss Whedon

#freedom #human-spirit #lyrics #music #possibilities

She sat listening to the music. It was a symphony of triumph. The notes flowed up, they spoke of rising and they were the rising itself, they were the essence and the form of upward motion, they seemed to embody every human act and thought that had ascent as its motive. It was a sunburst of sound, breaking out of hiding and spreading open. It had the freedom of release and the tension of purpose. It swept space clean, and left nothing but the joy of an unobstructed effort. Only a faint echo within the sounds spoke of that from which the music had escaped, but spoke in laughing astonishment at the discovery that there was no ugliness or pain, and there never had to be. It was the song of an immense deliverance. ↗

— Ayn Rand

#freedom

My own opinion is enough for me, and I claim the right to have it defended against any consensus, any majority, anywhere, any place, any time. And anyone who disagrees with this can pick a number, get in line, and kiss my ass. ↗

— Christopher Hitchens

#freedom

There is more than one kind of freedom. Freedom to and freedom from. In the days of anarchy, it was freedom to. Now you are being given freedom from. Don't underrate it. ↗

— Margaret Atwood

#freedom

It is vain to expect virtue from women till they are in some degree independent of men. ↗

— Mary Wollstonecraft

#empowerment #feminism #freedom #gender #hypocrisy

To belong nowhere is a blessing and a curse, like any kind of freedom. ↗

— Leah Stewart

#freedom #wanderlust #freedom

Oh, God, to know you is life. To serve You is freedom. To praise you is the soul's joy and delight. Guard me with the power of Your grace here and in all places. Now and at all times, forever. Amen. ↗

— Augustine of Hippo

#freedom

Our natural, inalienable rights are now considered to be a dispensation from government, and freedom has never been so fragile, so close to slipping from our grasp as it is at this moment. ↗

— Ronald Reagan

#scope-of-government #freedom