

“Freedom of speech is a principal pillar of a free government; when this support is taken away, the constitution of a free society is dissolved, and tyranny is erected on its ruins.”
On Freedom of Speech and the Press, Pennsylvania Gazette · 1737
Traced to On Freedom of Speech and the Press, Pennsylvania Gazette (1737).
More from Benjamin Franklin
“If you desire many things, many things will seem but a few.”
Benjamin Franklin
Poor Richard's Almanack · 1736
verified“That it is better 100 guilty Persons should escape than that one innocent Person should suffer, is a maxim that has been long and generally approved; never, that I know of, controverted.”
Benjamin Franklin
Letter to Benjamin Vaughan · 1785
verified“Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.”
Benjamin Franklin
Letter to the Abbés Chalut and Arnaud · 1787
verified“Remember that time is money.”
Benjamin Franklin
Advice to a Young Tradesman, Written by an Old One · 1748
verified“Love your Enemies, for they tell you your Faults.”
Benjamin Franklin
Poor Richard's Almanack · 1756
verified“If all printers were determined not to print anything till they were sure it would offend nobody, there would be very little printed.”
Benjamin Franklin
Apology for Printers · 1730
verifiedMore Leadership quotes
“Let the nation try justice and the problem will be solved.”
Frederick Douglass
Lessons of the Hour · 1894
verified“What I ask for the negro is not benevolence, not pity, not sympathy, but simply justice.”
Frederick Douglass
What the Black Man Wants · 1865
verified“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.”
Martin Luther King Jr.
I Have a Dream · 1963
verified“Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice.”
Nelson Mandela
Speech for the 'Make Poverty History' campaign · 2005
verified“If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner.”
Nelson Mandela
Long Walk to Freedom · 1995
verified“During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”
Nelson Mandela
I Am Prepared to Die (statement from the dock at the Rivonia Trial) · 1964
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