Quotes from Barbara Jordan

We have made mistakes. In our haste to do all things for all people, we did not foresee the full consequences of our actions. And when the people raised their voices, we didn't hear. But our deafness was only a temporary condition, and not an irreversible condition.

What the people want is very simple - they want an America as good as its promise.

I felt somehow for many years that George Washington and Alexander Hamilton just left me out by mistake. But through the process of amendment, interpretation, and court decision, I have finally been included in 'We, the people.'

I live a day at a time. Each day I look for a kernel of excitement. In the morning, I say: 'What is my exciting thing for today?' Then, I do the day. Don't ask me about tomorrow.

Justice of right is always to take precedence over might.

A spirit of harmony can only survive if each of us remembers, when bitterness and self-interest seem to prevail, that we share a common destiny.

We must exchange the philosophy of excuse - what I am is beyond my control for the philosophy of responsibility.

If we promise as public officials, we must deliver. If we as public officials propose, we must produce.

Do not call for black power or green power. Call for brain power.

A nation is formed by the willingness of each of us to share in the responsibility for upholding the common good.

What we have to do is strike a balance between the idea that government should do everything and the idea, the belief, that government ought to do nothing. Strike a balance.

We, as human beings, must be willing to accept people who are different from ourselves.

The imperative is to define what is right and do it.

For all of its uncertainty, we cannot flee the future.

We cannot improve on the system of government handed down to us by the founders of the Republic. There is no way to improve upon that. But what we can do is to find new ways to implement that system and realize our destiny.

I have confidence that we can form this kind of national community.

The majority of the American people still believe that every single individual in this country is entitled to just as much respect, just as much dignity, as every other individual.

If the society today allows wrongs to go unchallenged, the impression is created that those wrongs have the approval of the majority.

Think what a better world it would be if we all, the whole world, had cookies and milk about three o'clock every afternoon and then lay down on our blankets for a nap.

How do we create a harmonious society out of so many kinds of people? The key is tolerance -- the one value that is indispensable in creating community.

It is both a right and a responsibility of a democratic society to manage immigration so that it serves the national interest.

If you're going to play the game properly, you'd better know every rule.

One thing is clear to me: We, as human beings, must be willing to accept people who are different from ourselves.

We are a party of innovation. We do not reject our traditions, but we are willing to adapt to changing circumstances, when change we must. We are willing to suffer the discomfort of change in order to achieve a better future.