Sylvia Rivera

"Creativity is survival when you have nothing else."

"Justice means nothing without equity."

"Success looks different when you're coming from where I came from."

"Happiness is fleeting, but dignity is permanent."

"Wisdom comes from watching how systems destroy people."

"I learned about life from living it, not studying it."

"Love your community like they're family, because they are."

"True friendship means standing beside you in the worst moments."

"Education should free you, not trap you in debt."

"Know your worth because nobody else will tell you."

"Time stolen is something you never get back."

"The truth will set you free, but first it will hurt."

"Freedom means being yourself without fear."

"Hope is a discipline, not just a feeling."

"Courage isn't the absence of fear, it's loving anyway."

"Change requires sacrifice from those with privilege."

"Every person deserves to be educated about themselves."

"The strength of survival is in community, never alone."

"I faced fear by walking through it, not around it."

"Power shows itself when it's used to help the powerless."

"Money is violence when it's used to control people."

"Health is political because poverty kills."

"Adventure found me on the streets when I had nowhere else to go."

"Your imagination is your greatest tool for resistance."

"We used whatever technology we had to organize and survive."

"History will remember those who fought for the forgotten."

"Philosophy means nothing if you're not applying it to real struggle."

"The best literature is written by those who've lived the hardest lives."

"I've always believed politics is about taking care of your own."

"War on the poor is what we call policy."