"I am an American; free born and..." - Quote by Theodore Roosevelt
I am an American; free born and free bred, where I acknowledge no man as my superior, except for his own worth, or as my inferior, except for his own demerit.
More by Theodore Roosevelt
“There are good men and bad men of all nationalities, creeds and colors; and if this world of ours is ever to become what we hope some day it may become, it must be by the general recognition that the man's heart and soul, the man's worth and actions, determine his standing.”
“Only those are fit to live who do not fear to die and none are fit to die who have shrunk from the joy of life and the duty of life.”
“With self-discipline most anything is possible.”
More on American Identity
“The immigrant must not be allowed to drift or to be put at the mercy of the exploiter. Our object is not to imitate one of the older racial types, but to maintain a new American type and then to secure loyalty to this type. We cannot secure such loyalty unless we make this a country where men shall feel that they have justice and also where they shall feel that they are required to perform the duties imposed upon them.”
“Perhaps no custom reveals our character as a Nation so clearly as our celebration of Thanksgiving Day.”
“. . . And always remember that you are Americans, and it is your birthright to dream great dreams in this sweet and blessed land, truly the greatest, freest, strongest nation on Earth.”
More on Equality
“Preferring members of any one group for no reason other than race or ethnic origin is discrimination for its own sake. This the Constitution forbids.”
“The most sacred of the duties of a government [is] to do equal and impartial justice to all its citizens.”
“If you have always believed that everyone should play by the same rules and be judged by the same standards, that would have gotten you labeled a radical 60 years ago, a liberal 30 years ago and a racist today.”