Quotes About Rights

Free speech is not just another value. It's the foundation of Western civilization.

It's incredible being a woman. I was, of course, fortunate to have an Irish mother who is an empowered woman. She comes from the western culture where women's rights and empowerment happened much earlier in the 19th century.

Obama often criticizes policies that place the interests of the powerful ahead of the powerless. But through his administration's support of abortion rights, Obama shows his lack of empathy for society's most powerless.

But he said Blanket Hill should be a national monument. And so we came out of his chambers feeling, though while we had lost to the powers of darkness, we had at least shown one Federal Judge what the right path would have been.

People don't seem to understand that the separation of powers is not about the power of these branches; it's there to protect individual liberty - it's there to protect us from the concentration of power.

How are men to be secured in any rights without instruction; how to be secured in the equal exercise of those rights without equality of instruction? By instruction understand me to mean knowledge - just knowledge; not talent, not genius, not inventive mental powers.

Any government, that is its own judge of, and determines authoritatively for the people, what are its own powers over the people, is an absolute government of course. It has all the powers that it chooses to exercise. There is no other or at least no more accurate definition of a despotism than this.

My battles have been against federal actions that exceed the powers our Founders granted to the federal government in the constitution.

Encroachment upon the powers and rights of States also goes against the grain of the Constitution and federal principles.

The right and the physical power of the people to resist injustice, are really the only securities that any people ever can have for their liberties. Practically no government knows any limit to its power but the endurance of the people.

All are free to believe or not believe; all are free to practice a faith or not. But those who believe must be free to speak of and act on their belief.

I'm a lawyer, I practiced for many years, and so I believe in the Fifth Amendment.

The democratic state can sometimes abuse its power as much as those who seek to destroy it abuse fundamental rights and democratic practices.

Our government should never stop anyone from practicing their faith or exercising their rights to operate a business if it can be done in a safe manner.

I try to do that in this book without preaching - to try to do as you just said that you really have to defend the First Amendment rights of everybody.

I'm writing a musical. I am. I was able to buy the rights to 'The Preacher's Wife,' which starred Whitney Houston... I'm writing a whole new score and all the lyrics for it.

Giving up even an ounce of precious freedom is a very serious thing to do.

Liberty: One of Imagination's most precious possessions.

Democracy is a precious thing and the rights of parliament are a precious thing.

Liberty is the most precious gift we offer our citizens.

It is, in fact, precisely to defend the right to free speech that countless patriots have given the last full measure of devotion.

The whole idea that someone should not be able to marry who they love based on their gender and their preference is ridiculous.

Sexual preference has nothing to do with civil rights.

I believe in the right to choose. I have chosen to end a pregnancy before.