54 Inspiring And Empowering Feminist Quotes, From Michelle Obama To Gloria Steinem

'One is not born, but rather becomes, a woman.'

An excerpt from the existential philosopher and feminist activist's groundbreaking work, The Second Sex.

'When I speak of the erotic, then, I speak of it as an assertion of the lifeforce of women; of that creative energy empowered, the knowledge and use of which we are now reclaiming in our language, our history, our dancing, our loving, our work, our lives.'

This radical passage is taken from Lorde's essay 'Uses of the Erotic: The Erotic as Power' in her seminal essay collection Sister Outsider.

'Feminism always gets associated with being a radical movement – good. It should be.'

Elliot Page told The Guardian.

'Find who you are in this world and what you need to feel good alone. I think that's the most important thing in life. Find a sense of self because with that, you can do anything else.'

As told by the actress to Cosmopolitan.

'We fight the same battles over and over again. They are never won for eternity, but in the process of struggling together, in community, we learn how to glimpse new possibilities that otherwise never would have become apparent to us, and in the process we expand and enlarge our very notion of freedom.'

The American political activist, philosopher, academic, and author said in a lecture at National Women’s Studies Association Conference, Atlanta in 2009.

'It took me quite a long time to develop a voice, and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent.'

The former United States Secretary of State told Huffpost.

'I am proposing the feminisation of society; the use of feminine nature as a positive force to change the world.

'We can change ourselves with feminine intelligence and awareness, into a basically organic, noncompetitive society that is based on love, rather than reasoning.'

As written by the radical feminist, activist and multimedia artist in her article 'The Feminisation of Society' in Sundance Magazine, 1972.

'The enemy is not lipstick, but guilt itself; we deserve lipstick, if we want it, AND free speech; we deserve to be sexual AND serious – or whatever we please. We are entitled to wear cowboy boots to our own revolution.'

Eloquent words by the author of The Beauty Myth and Vagina: A New Biography.

'Each suburban wife struggled with it alone. As she made the beds, shopped for groceries, matched slipcover material, ate peanut butter sandwiches with her children, chauffeured Cub Scouts and Brownies, lay beside her husband at night — she was afraid to ask even of herself the silent question — “Is this all?”'

As written in The Feminine Mystique, 1963.

'I do not wish them [women] to have power over men; but over themselves.'

Written in A Vindication Of The Rights Of Women in 1792.

'Feminism is for everybody.'

From hooks' 2000 book of the same title.

'I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives.'

The author put the wise words to paper in Persuasion in 1817.

'Alone, a woman is a root curling for change,

But together, women are a forest alive with spirit:a riotous power, the most timeless pact,a call to act, to all those who hear it.

Sturdy as crouched valleys, proud as hard-baked earth, there is nothing more natural than a woman who knows the worth of making the choice to raise her voice.'

An except from a poem written three years prior to her incomparable recital of The Hill We Climb at the US Inauguration in January 2020. The poem was written exclusively for ELLE UK for our September 2018 Sustainability issue, addressing the women of the world.

'I stand on the sacrifices of a million women before me thinking what can i do to make this mountain taller so the women after me can see farther'

The famed 'Queen of the Instapoets’ became a literary mainstay and a global sensation, after she self published her first collection (milk and honey) of poetry about love, heartbreak and womanhood aged 21.

This quote from the poem legacy comes from her second collection titled the sun and her flowers.

'Beware; for I am fearless and therefore powerful'

The Frankenstein author and daughter of Mary Wollstonescraft wrote the phrase in the 1823 novel.

'You have to use your privilege to serve other people'

Burke, who is the founder of the #MeToo movement, said this statement during an interview with the Guardian in 2018.

'Have I become a feminist?

'Well, if being a feminist is about fighting so that a woman is treated like a man then yes, I suppose I have.'

Tennis champion Andy Murray's said this in a 2014 column for the sports newspaper L’Equipe, in which he defended his female coach, Amélie Mauresmo, who had been receiving sexist comments.

'The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud.'

Words to live by according to the fashion designer.

'One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well.'

The novellist penned the phrase in A Room of One's Own (1929).

'If feminism can understand the patriarchy, it’s important to question why so many feminists struggle to understand whiteness as a political structure in the very same way.'

Taken from the intersectional feminist author's 2017 book Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race.

'I took a deep breath and listened to the old brag of my heart. I am, I am, I am.'

From the writer's only novel, The Bell Jar, published in 1963.

'We know that when women are empowered, they immeasurably improve the lives of everyone around them – their families, their communities, and their countries'

'This is not just about women, we need men to recognise the part we play too. Real men treat women with dignity and give them the respect they deserve.'

Prince Harry voiced his support for the empowerment of women in a speech at the Chime for Change concert in 2013.

'You may shoot me with your words, you may cut me with your eyes, you may kill me with your hatefulness. But still, like air, I rise.'

A verse from Maya Angelou's inimitable poem Still I Rise, first published in 1978.

'Women are leaders everywhere you look—from the CEO who runs a Fortune 500 company to the housewife who raises her children and heads her household. Our country was built by strong women, and we will continue to break down walls and defy stereotypes.'

Pelosi is the current Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, she is the only women in history to have served in the role.

'Where there is a woman there is magic. If there is a moon falling from her mouth, she is a woman who knows her magic. She can share or not share her powers. This woman is a consort of the spirits.'

The playwright and poet wrote this in her 1982 novel, Sassafrass, Cypress & Indigo.

'Women may be the one group that grows more radical with age.'

The activist is believed to have stated this powerful quote in a collection of essays published in 1983.

'There's a special place in hell for women who don't help each other.'

The former Secretary of State first made the comments around 1991 and then uttered them again for a rally for Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign in 2016.

'I don't like to gamble. But if there's one thing I'm willing to bet on, it's myself.'

The singer said this during a 2001 interview with ABC.

'When you have a little girl, it's like, how can you teach her that you're in control of her body?

'She has got to have command of her body. So when she goes out into the world, she's going out with a command that is hers. She is used to making those decisions herself. We try to keep giving them those decisions until they can hold the full weight of their lives.'

Smith said this during a discussion about raising his daughter, Willow, in a 2014 interview with Parade.

'My mum said to me, "You know, sweetheart one day you should settle down and marry a rich man". I said, "Mum, I am a rich man"'.

The singer uttered the resurfaced viral quotes in a 1996 interview.