--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We have a revolutionary history to honor…" description: "\"We have a revolutionary history to honor and uphold. Which was what Nelson Mandela did. He reminded us of that which we need to be reminded, over and o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/927/charlie-pierce-13624_history_we-have-a-revolutionary-history-to-honor_2032855.png" --- # We have a revolutionary history to honor and uphold. Which… ![“We have a revolutionary history to honor and uphold. Which was what Nelson Mandela did. He reminded us of that which we need to be reminded, over and over again, about our own best selves.” quote by Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/927/charlie-pierce-13624_history_we-have-a-revolutionary-history-to-honor_2032855.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/927/charlie-pierce-13624_history_we-have-a-revolutionary-history-to-honor_2032855.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/927/charlie-pierce-13624_history_we-have-a-revolutionary-history-to-honor_2032855.png) > “We have a revolutionary history to honor and uphold. Which was what Nelson Mandela did. He reminded us of that which we need to be reminded, over and over again, about our own best selves.” [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We must repeatedly recall Mandela’s legacy to inspire our best selves. **In simple terms:** Remember Mandela to become better. Key Takeaway Regularly revisit inspiring role models. Themes inspiration legacy self-improvement Mood hopeful motivational Type historical inspirational When to use this quote - community service - activism - personal goal setting - education Key Concepts history politics ethics Questions to Reflect On - Which values from Mandela resonate with you? - How can you act on those values today? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on past heroes may hinder original thinking. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Honor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honor/) [Revolutionary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/revolutionary/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) ## Related quotes > [Look at Nelson Mandela. Why did people want to follow him? He's a lousy speaker. If he hadn't got all the other things, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/look-at-nelson-mandela-why-did-people-want-to-follow-him-he-s-a-lousy/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [Mandela did go to prison, and he went in there as a burning revolutionary. But look what came out. Mandela let us down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winnie-madikizela-mandela/mandela-did-go-to-prison-and-he-went-in-there-as-a-burning/) [Winnie Madikizela-Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winnie-madikizela-mandela/) > [In Durban, where I was born and grew up, and all over Africa, Nelson Mandela was a hero! Now he is a hero to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kumi-naidoo/in-durban-where-i-was-born-and-grew-up-and-all-over-africa-nelson/) [Kumi Naidoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kumi-naidoo/) > [Nelson Mandela was a towering figure in our time; a legend in life and now in death - a true global hero.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cameron/nelson-mandela-was-a-towering-figure-in-our-time-a-legend-in-life-and/) [David Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cameron/) > [Former South Africa President Nelson Mandela announced Tuesday he will begin writing his autobiography. He spent 25 years in prison before being elected to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/argus-hamilton/former-south-africa-president-nelson-mandela-announced-tuesday-he/) [Argus Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/argus-hamilton/) > [Nelson Mandela will always be the face of South Africa. The traveler passing through the country will see Mandela's face almost everywhere he looks.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/nelson-mandela-will-always-be-the-face-of-south-africa-the-traveler/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [What an honor it was to step into the shoes of Nelson Mandela and portray a man who defied odds, broke down barriers, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idris-elba/what-an-honor-it-was-to-step-into-the-shoes-of-nelson-mandela-and/) [Idris Elba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idris-elba/) > [Nelson Mandela once said "I can't help it if the ladies take note of me; I'm not going to protest."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kumi-naidoo/nelson-mandela-once-said-i-can-t-help-it-if-the-ladies-take-note-of/) [Kumi Naidoo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kumi-naidoo/) > [Nelson Mandela can rot in prison until he dies or I die, whichever takes longer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-w-botha/nelson-mandela-can-rot-in-prison-until-he-dies-or-i-die-whichever/) [P. W. Botha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-w-botha/) > [Even here in America, we felt the cool, refreshing breeze of freedom when Nelson Mandela took the seat of Presidency in his country where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/even-here-in-america-we-felt-the-cool-refreshing-breeze-of-freedom/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [Video screenshot Facts and figures from Nelson Mandela's life, set to the trailer from 'Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom.' "Man's goodness is a flame…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/video-screenshot-facts-and-figures-from-nelson-mandela-s-life-set-to/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [As a world leader who refused to accept injustice, Nelson Mandela's courage helped change our entire world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salil-shetty/as-a-world-leader-who-refused-to-accept-injustice-nelson-mandela-s/) Salil Shetty > [“Mandela alikuwa hodari ndiyo maana akapelekwa jela. Alikuwa mvumilivu ndiyo maana akakaa jela kwa miaka ishirini na saba. Alivyotoka akawa kiongozi bora wa Afrika…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enock-maregesi/mandela-alikuwa-hodari-ndiyo-maana-akapelekwa-jela-alikuwa-mvumilivu/) [Enock Maregesi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enock-maregesi/) > [Nelson Mandela is a leader Barack Obama should try to emulate... He could start by spending 27 years in prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-imus/nelson-mandela-is-a-leader-barack-obama-should-try-to-emulate-he/) [Don Imus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-imus/) > [Nelson Mandela was an outstanding leader and a mentor for me. I was in South Africa at the time he was released. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-kelly/nelson-mandela-was-an-outstanding-leader-and-a-mentor-for-me-i-was-in/) [Gail Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-kelly/) ## More by Charlie Pierce > [There is a barbarism in the American soul, and we must protect some of it by law. To root it out is to endanger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/there-is-a-barbarism-in-the-american-soul-and-we-must-protect-some-of/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [This has been the new normal since September 11. Everyone knows, but nobody says, that if something happens again, the elite consensus in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/this-has-been-the-new-normal-since-september-11-everyone-knows-but/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [For all the huffing and blowing we get about rugged individualism, the American spirit and the American experiment always have had at their heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/for-all-the-huffing-and-blowing-we-get-about-rugged-individualism-the/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [There is a lot in American politics (and in American life) that is angry, greedy, reckless and violent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/there-is-a-lot-in-american-politics-and-in-american-life-that-is/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [The idea that America elected a black man to be its president forty years after it declined to allow Martin Luther King Jr. to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/the-idea-that-america-elected-a-black-man-to-be-its-president-forty/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [You know, what genuinely makes me uneasy with the way things are going are not - is not really that Trump is going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/you-know-what-genuinely-makes-me-uneasy-with-the-way-things-are-going/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [The institutions of college athletics exist primarily as unreality fueled by deceit. The unreality is that universities should be in the business of providing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/the-institutions-of-college-athletics-exist-primarily-as-unreality/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [In order to get big things done, sometimes, presidents have to be deft at moving the pea around under the shells.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/in-order-to-get-big-things-done-sometimes-presidents-have-to-be-deft/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [There was no way to lock down, or tighten up, or Fail-Safe into Security Theater a race that covers 26.2 miles, a race that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/there-was-no-way-to-lock-down-or-tighten-up-or-fail-safe-into/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [The man is the Piltdown Man of modern politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/the-man-is-the-piltdown-man-of-modern-politics/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [To recognize that head injuries were as essential a part of football as they are of boxing would be to erase the fine distinction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/to-recognize-that-head-injuries-were-as-essential-a-part-of-football/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [School districts around the country, and the taxpayers that support them, have a moral right to the information the NFL might have concerning the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/school-districts-around-the-country-and-the-taxpayers-that-support/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [There are few colonial nations anymore. Instead, we are colonized by financial institutions beyond our political control. We are colonized with pens and papers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/there-are-few-colonial-nations-anymore-instead-we-are-colonized-by/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [Obama ran as sane and decent, as though we were electing a mood, and not necessarily a set of policies. Unfortunately, Obama has governed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/obama-ran-as-sane-and-decent-as-though-we-were-electing-a-mood-and/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) > [One of the great changes wrought by the increased public awareness of Alzheimer's - and thank you, Nancy Reagan, you wonderful tough old dame,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-pierce/one-of-the-great-changes-wrought-by-the-increased-public-awareness-of/) [Charlie Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) [Explore all 49 Charlie Pierce quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-pierce/) ## More History quotes > [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [It is said that history turns on small hinges. A human career, too, results from an accumulating series of decisions about large and small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/it-is-said-that-history-turns-on-small-hinges-a-human-career-too/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [In the entire history of the universe, let alone in your own history, there has never been another day just like today, and there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-buechner/in-the-entire-history-of-the-universe-let-alone-in-your-own-history/) [Frederick Buechner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-buechner/) > [The NBA is my history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penny-hardaway/the-nba-is-my-history/) [Penny Hardaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penny-hardaway/) > [History has often showed us the strength of the forces that are unleashed by the yearning for freedom. It moved people to overcome their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-merkel/history-has-often-showed-us-the-strength-of-the-forces-that-are/) [Angela Merkel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-merkel/) > [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [What is history after all? History is facts which become lies in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-cocteau/what-is-history-after-all-history-is-facts-which-become-lies-in-the/) [Jean Cocteau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-cocteau/) > [Things live and die, and then someone processes them into edible portions. This is a complete telling of the story, 'Food.' The basic plot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-fahrenthold/things-live-and-die-and-then-someone-processes-them-into-edible/) [David Fahrenthold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-fahrenthold/) > [History is a certain way, but you just change the point of view a little bit, and you discover a whole new side of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allison-schroeder/history-is-a-certain-way-but-you-just-change-the-point-of-view-a/) [Allison Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allison-schroeder/) > [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/) [Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/) > [Today is a reality, tomorrow's a promise, and yesterday's history!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-blanks/today-is-a-reality-tomorrow-s-a-promise-and-yesterday-s-history/) [Billy Blanks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-blanks/) > [Truth be told from compulsive liars with a history/Everything must change 2nd chances are a mystery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-dash/truth-be-told-from-compulsive-liars-with-a-history-everything-must/) C-DASH > [Every army in the history of the world has always had some deserters, usually much greater than we have today, because once again every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/every-army-in-the-history-of-the-world-has-always-had-some-deserters/) [Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/) > [“To those great geniuses now in petticoats, who shall write novels for the beloved reader's children, these men and things will be as much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/to-those-great-geniuses-now-in-petticoats-who-shall-write-novels-for/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) [Browse all 27,263 History quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We have a revolutionary history to honor and uphold. 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