It is only when we speak what is right that we stand a chance at night of being blown to bits in our homes. Can we call this a free country, when I am afraid to go to sleep in my own home in Mississippi?... I might not live two hours after I get back home, but I want to be a part of setting the Negro free in Mississippi.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Hamer links civil rights activism to existential danger, questioning national freedom while highlighting her commitment to liberation despite mortal risk.
- In plain terms
- She risks her life for freedom but refuses to stay silent.
- What can you take from it?
- True freedom requires risking safety to speak truth.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What risks are you willing to take for justice?
- How do we define freedom in unsafe places?
Another view
Her experience reflects a specific historical moment rather than universal conditions.
More from Fannie Lou Hamer
With the people, for the people, by the people. I crack up when I hear it; I say, with the handful, for the handful, by the handful, 'cause that's what really …
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Permalink to quote #3 It's time for America to get right.
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