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.

Meaning of the quote

Thurgood Marshall, an American judge, said that a Black child born in a poor state and a white child born to a wealthy family should have the same rights. This is not the reality right now, but he believes it is a goal that is worth working towards, no matter how difficult it may seem.

About Thurgood Marshall

Thurgood Marshall was a pioneering African-American civil rights lawyer and Supreme Court justice. He fought tirelessly to end racial segregation in America, winning landmark cases like Brown v. Board of Education. As the first Black Supreme Court justice, he was a liberal voice on the bench, frequently dissenting as the court became more conservative.

More about the author

More quotes from Thurgood Marshall

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

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

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

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

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

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

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

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

Ending racial discrimination in jury selection can be accomplished only by eliminating peremptory challenges entirely.

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

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.

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

Sometimes history takes things into its own hands.

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

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

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

What is the quality of your intent?

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

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

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

If the First Amendment means anything, it means that a state has no business telling a man, sitting alone in his house, what books he may read or what films he may watch.

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991

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.

Thurgood Marshall

Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1967 to 1991