Quotes from Thurgood Marshall

My father had a flat rule. He believed that every man's house was his castle. He had a flat rule: no man could come in his house without his permission.

Each of you, as an individual, must pick your own goals. Listen to others, but do not become a blind follower.

Deciding not to decide is, of course, among the most important things done by the Supreme Court. It takes a lot of doing, but it can be done.

Our whole constitutional heritage rebels at the thought of giving government the power to control men's minds.

I have a lifetime appointment and I intend to serve it. I expect to die at 110, shot by a jealous husband.

History teaches that grave threats to liberty often come in times of urgency, when constitutional rights seem too extravagant to endure.

In recognizing the humanity of our fellow beings, we pay ourselves the highest tribute.

Surely the fact that a uniformed police officer is wearing his hair below his collar will make him no less identifiable as a policeman.

It was taken for granted that we had to make something of ourselves. Not much was said about it; it was just in the atmosphere of the home.

What is the quality of your intent?

The process of democracy is one of change. Our laws are not frozen into immutable form, they are constantly in the process of revision in response to the needs of a changing society.

Classifications and distinctions based on race or color have no moral or legal validity in our society. They are contrary to our constitution and laws.

We deal here with the right of all of our children, whatever their race, to an equal start in life and to an equal opportunity to reach their full potential as citizens. Those children who have been denied that right in the past deserve better than to see fences thrown up to deny them that right in the future.

'Black' is an adjective, in my book, and the way I use it, sometimes I'll say 'black people.' But if I'm talking about a person, I'm going to say 'a Negro,' because I was taught to say that, and I don't see any reason to change it. I don't think that gives pride or anything else. I don't think you get pride by calling yourself this or that.

Mere access to the courthouse doors does not by itself assure a proper functioning of the adversary process.

I never worked hard until I got to the Howard Law School and met Charlie Houston... I saw this man's dedication, his vision, his willingness to sacrifice, and I told myself, 'You either shape up or ship out.' When you are being challenged by a great human being, you know that you can't ship out.

None of us got where we are solely by pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.

This is a great country, but fortunately for you, it is not perfect. There is much to be done to bring about complete equality. Remove hunger. Bring reality closer to theory and democratic principles.

Equal means getting the same thing, at the same time and in the same place.

The measure of a country's greatness is its ability to retain compassion in time of crisis.

Today's Constitution is a realistic document of freedom only because of several corrective amendments. Those amendments speak to a sense of decency and fairness that I and other Blacks cherish.

A child born to a Black mother in a state like Mississippi... has exactly the same rights as a white baby born to the wealthiest person in the United States. It's not true, but I challenge anyone to say it is not a goal worth working for.

We can always stick together when we are losing, but tend to find means of breaking up when we're winning. In Grace under Pressure, by Hastie, 1984.

Truth is more than a mental exercise.