--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: All men are created equal. Now matter how…" description: "\"All men are created equal. Now matter how hard they try, they can never erase those words. That is what America is about.\" — Harvey Milk" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/960/harvey-milk-9963_america_all-men-are-created-equal-now-matter-how_1244073.jpg" --- # All men are created equal. Now matter how hard they try… ![“All men are created equal. Now matter how hard they try, they can never erase those words. That is what America is about.” quote by Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/960/harvey-milk-9963_america_all-men-are-created-equal-now-matter-how_1244073.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/960/harvey-milk-9963_america_all-men-are-created-equal-now-matter-how_1244073.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/960/harvey-milk-9963_america_all-men-are-created-equal-now-matter-how_1244073.jpg) > “All men are created equal. Now matter how hard they try, they can never erase those words. That is what America is about.” [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The principle of equality is fundamental, yet society often fails to live up to it, highlighting a gap between ideals and reality. **In simple terms:** Equality is a core ideal but often unmet. Key Takeaway Recognize and work toward true equality. Themes equality justice American ideals Mood reflective determined Type political historical When to use this quote - political activism - education reform - community organizing Key Concepts Human rights social contract civil rights Questions to Reflect On - How can we bridge the gap between principle and practice? - What actions can individuals take to uphold equality? A Different Perspective Idealism can clash with entrenched inequalities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) [Created Equal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/created-equal/) [Equal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/equal/) [Equal Matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/equal-matter-3720198/) [Erase](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/erase/) [Matter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matter/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men Created](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-created/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Words America](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words-america-3811244/) ## Related quotes > [All men are created Equal. Some just have more Splenda.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/all-men-are-created-equal-some-just-have-more-splenda/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [All men are created equal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/all-men-are-created-equal/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [For all the great dreams profitlessly invested in the digital computer, it is nonetheless true that not since the framers of the American Constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-berlinski/for-all-the-great-dreams-profitlessly-invested-in-the-digital/) [David Berlinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-berlinski/) > [When all Americans are treated as equal, no matter who they are or whom they love, we are all more free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/when-all-americans-are-treated-as-equal-no-matter-who-they-are-or/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [“in this moment of orangutans, wolves, and scavengers, of high heat redesigning the north & south poles and the wanderings of new tribes in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haki-r-madhubuti/in-this-moment-of-orangutans-wolves-and-scavengers-of-high-heat/) [Haki R. Madhubuti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haki-r-madhubuti/) > [I'm convinced we're going to rebuild not only the auto industry, but the economy better and stronger than before. And at its heart is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-m-convinced-we-re-going-to-rebuild-not-only-the-auto-industry-but/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [All men are created equal and have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/all-men-are-created-equal-and-have-the-right-to-life-liberty-and-the/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The assertion that 'all men are created equal' was of no practical use in effecting our separation from Great Britain and it was placed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-lincoln/the-assertion-that-all-men-are-created-equal-was-of-no-practical-use/) [Abraham Lincoln](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-lincoln/) > [“We know all men are not created equal in the sense some people would have us believe. Some people are smarter than others, some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/we-know-all-men-are-not-created-equal-in-the-sense-some-people-would/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [For you in the West to hear the phrase 'All men are created equal' is to draw a yawn. For us, it's a miracle.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/athol-fugard/for-you-in-the-west-to-hear-the-phrase-all-men-are-created-equal-is/) [Athol Fugard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/athol-fugard/) > [You don't know who to believe. Like Abraham Lincoln. He said all men were created equal. He never went to a nude beach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodney-dangerfield/you-don-t-know-who-to-believe-like-abraham-lincoln-he-said-all-men/) [Rodney Dangerfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodney-dangerfield/) > [“Thomas Jefferson once said that all men are created equal (...). There is a tendency (...) for certain people to use this phrase out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/thomas-jefferson-once-said-that-all-men-are-created-equal-there-is-a/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [“One more thing, gentlemen, before I quit. Thomas Jefferson once said that all men are created equal, a phrase that the Yankees and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee-to-kill-a-mockingbird/one-more-thing-gentlemen-before-i-quit-thomas-jefferson-once-said/) [Harper Lee To Kill A Mockingbird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee-to-kill-a-mockingbird/) > [All men are created equal and endowed by their Creator with a mighty urge to become otherwise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-esar/all-men-are-created-equal-and-endowed-by-their-creator-with-a-mighty/) [Evan Esar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-esar/) > ["All men are created equal." "Government by consent of the governed." "Give me liberty or give me death." And those are not just clever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-b-johnson/all-men-are-created-equal-government-by-consent-of-the-governed-give/) [Lyndon B. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-b-johnson/) ## More by Harvey Milk > [Some people call me the unofficial mayor of Castro Street.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/some-people-call-me-the-unofficial-mayor-of-castro-street/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [“Let's make no mistake about this: The American Dream starts with the neighborhoods. If we wish to rebuild our cities, we must first rebuild…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/let-s-make-no-mistake-about-this-the-american-dream-starts-with-the/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [We will not win our rights by staying quietly in our closets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/we-will-not-win-our-rights-by-staying-quietly-in-our-closets/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [If it were true that children mimicked their teachers, you'd sure have a helluva lot more nuns running around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/if-it-were-true-that-children-mimicked-their-teachers-you-d-sure-have/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [Never take an elevator in city hall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/never-take-an-elevator-in-city-hall/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [Out of the bars and into the streets!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/out-of-the-bars-and-into-the-streets/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [Rights are won only by those who make their voices heard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/rights-are-won-only-by-those-who-make-their-voices-heard/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [We are coming out to tell the truths about gays, for I am tired of the conspiracy of silence, so I'm going to talk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/we-are-coming-out-to-tell-the-truths-about-gays-for-i-am-tired-of-the/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [The first gay people we elect must be strong. They must not be content to sit in the back of the bus. They must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/the-first-gay-people-we-elect-must-be-strong-they-must-not-be-content/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [Let me have my tax money go for my protection and not for my prosecution. Let my tax money go for the protection of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/let-me-have-my-tax-money-go-for-my-protection-and-not-for-my/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [I wish I had time to explain everything I did. Almost everything was done with an eye on the GLBT movement...last week I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/i-wish-i-had-time-to-explain-everything-i-did-almost-everything-was/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [Freedom is too enormous to be slipped under a closet door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/freedom-is-too-enormous-to-be-slipped-under-a-closet-door/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [It takes no compromising to give people their rights. It takes no money to respect the individual. It takes no survey to remove repressions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/it-takes-no-compromising-to-give-people-their-rights-it-takes-no/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [If I turned around every time somebody called me a faggot, I'd be walking backward - and I don't want to walk backward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/if-i-turned-around-every-time-somebody-called-me-a-faggot-i-d-be/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) > [“You’ve gotta give them hope. If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-milk/you-ve-gotta-give-them-hope-if-a-bullet-should-enter-my-brain-let/) [Harvey Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) [Explore all 69 Harvey Milk quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-milk/) ## More America quotes > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [Well, The Day the Earth Caught Fire was a story... I don't if anybody knows what it is but it was about... in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/val-guest/well-the-day-the-earth-caught-fire-was-a-story-i-don-t-if-anybody/) [Val Guest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/val-guest/) > [So here's what I want you to know, and here's what I want all our men and women in uniform to know: Because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-here-s-what-i-want-you-to-know-and-here-s-what-i-want-all-our-men/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Today, the world looks to America for leadership. And America looks to its Corps of Marines.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/today-the-world-looks-to-america-for-leadership-and-america-looks-to/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [ I'll smoke, I'll cough, I'll get the tumors, I'll die, deal? Thank you America. \[salutes\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-ll-smoke-i-ll-cough-i-ll-get-the-tumors-i-ll-die-deal-thank-you/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I'm gonna bring America together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-m-gonna-bring-america-together/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [In the nineteenth century some parts of the world were unexplored, but there was almost no restriction on travel.:; Up to 1914 you did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/in-the-nineteenth-century-some-parts-of-the-world-were-unexplored-but/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [America, you're sending girls a mixed message. On one hand, you're saying to have positive body image and love who we are; on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adora-svitak/america-you-re-sending-girls-a-mixed-message-on-one-hand-you-re/) [Adora Svitak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adora-svitak/) > [You live overseas, you see these exotic places and you want to know about them. But, weirdly, it also made me homesick for all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-jennings/you-live-overseas-you-see-these-exotic-places-and-you-want-to-know/) [Ken Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-jennings/) > [Freedom in every sense but primarily political sense, a rise in repression that stems from a repression of sexuality. It's AIDS, it's herpes, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/freedom-in-every-sense-but-primarily-political-sense-a-rise-in/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [“In American terms, the accomplishment of Genghis Khan might be understood if the United States, instead of being created by a group of educated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-weatherford/in-american-terms-the-accomplishment-of-genghis-khan-might-be/) [Jack Weatherford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-weatherford/) [Browse all 20,382 America quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/america/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "All men are created equal. Now matter how hard they try, they can never erase those words. 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