--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That is a lie. I'm not for wanton…" description: "\"That is a lie. I'm not for wanton violence, I'm for justice.\" — Malcolm X" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/malcolm-x-213_crime_that-is-a-lie-i-m-not-for-wanton-violenc_1681367.jpg" --- # That is a lie. I'm not for wanton violence, I'm for justice. ![“That is a lie. I'm not for wanton violence, I'm for justice.” quote by Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/malcolm-x-213_crime_that-is-a-lie-i-m-not-for-wanton-violenc_1681367.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/malcolm-x-213_crime_that-is-a-lie-i-m-not-for-wanton-violenc_1681367.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/756/malcolm-x-213_crime_that-is-a-lie-i-m-not-for-wanton-violenc_1681367.jpg) > “That is a lie. I'm not for wanton violence, I'm for justice.” [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker denies being violent, asserting that his actions aim for justice, not wanton harm. **In simple terms:** Violence is rejected; justice is the goal. Key Takeaway Focus on justice, not aggression. Themes justice nonviolence rights Mood determined serious Type political philosophical When to use this quote - protest - legal advocacy - community organizing - education Key Concepts ethical action social change civil rights Questions to Reflect On - What defines just action? - How can you oppose violence while seeking justice? A Different Perspective Justice can be hard to achieve without confronting systemic violence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/justice/) [Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violence/) ## Related quotes > [They call me "a teacher, a fomenter of violence." I would say point blank, "That is a lie. I'm not for wanton violence, I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/they-call-me-a-teacher-a-fomenter-of-violence-i-would-say-point-blank/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [“No amount of culture or civilization can subdue or hide the wanton violence in man.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-nagarkar/no-amount-of-culture-or-civilization-can-subdue-or-hide-the-wanton/) [Kiran Nagarkar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-nagarkar/) > [Non-violence is justice upon subject of](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/non-violence-is-justice-upon-subject-of/) Mak\_786 > [Mob justice is not justice. Justice sought by violence is not justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-cameron/mob-justice-is-not-justice-justice-sought-by-violence-is-not-justice/) [Daniel Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-cameron/) > [“VIOLENCE IS NEVER A JUSTICE”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-s-jagadeesh-kumar/violence-is-never-a-justice/) [P.S. Jagadeesh Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-s-jagadeesh-kumar/) > [Capricious, wanton, bold, and brutal Lust Is meanly selfish; when resisted, cruel; And, like the blast of Pestilential Winds, Taints the sweet bloom of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/capricious-wanton-bold-and-brutal-lust-is-meanly-selfish-when/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [Discipline means protection from one's own wanton interest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-vaughan/discipline-means-protection-from-one-s-own-wanton-interest/) [Bill Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-vaughan/) > [The wondrous thing about nature, her gift to us, is her wanton promiscuity. She reproduces herself with abandon, with teeming infinite generosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-ozeki/the-wondrous-thing-about-nature-her-gift-to-us-is-her-wanton/) [Ruth Ozeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-ozeki/) > [We ought never to sport with pain and distress in any of our amusements, or treat even the meanest insect with wanton cruelty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-blair/we-ought-never-to-sport-with-pain-and-distress-in-any-of-our/) [Hugh Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-blair/) > [Youth must be wanton, youth must be quick, Dance to the candle while lasteth the wick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/youth-must-be-wanton-youth-must-be-quick-dance-to-the-candle-while/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [Take heed thou trust not the deceitful lap Of wanton Dalilah; the world's a trap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-quarles/take-heed-thou-trust-not-the-deceitful-lap-of-wanton-dalilah-the/) [Francis Quarles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-quarles/) > [My prophecy is but half his journey yet, For yonder walls, that pertly front your town, Yon towers, whose wanton tops do buss the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/my-prophecy-is-but-half-his-journey-yet-for-yonder-walls-that-pertly/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [As love is full of unbefitting strains, All wanton as a child, skipping and vain, Form'd by the eye and therefore, like the eye,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/as-love-is-full-of-unbefitting-strains-all-wanton-as-a-child-skipping/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [War means blind obedience, unthinking stupidity, brutish callousness, wanton destruction, and irresponsible murder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-berkman/war-means-blind-obedience-unthinking-stupidity-brutish-callousness/) [Alexander Berkman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-berkman/) > [The tongue of slander is too prompt with wanton malice to wound the stranger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/the-tongue-of-slander-is-too-prompt-with-wanton-malice-to-wound-the/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) ## More by Malcolm X > [If Christianity had asserted itself in Germany, six million Jews would have lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/if-christianity-had-asserted-itself-in-germany-six-million-jews-would/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Adam Clayton Powell's entire political career has to be looked at in the entire context of the American history and the history of, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/adam-clayton-powell-s-entire-political-career-has-to-be-looked-at-in/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [American civil rights leader, Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? Lynching is a murder. For the past four hundred years our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/american-civil-rights-leader-where-do-we-go-from-here-chaos-or/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Be nonviolent only with those who are nonviolent to you. And when you can bring me a nonviolent racist, bring me a nonviolent segregationist,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/be-nonviolent-only-with-those-who-are-nonviolent-to-you-and-when-you/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [You can't legislate good will - that comes through education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/you-can-t-legislate-good-will-that-comes-through-education/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Truth is on the side of the oppressed today, it's against the oppressor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/truth-is-on-the-side-of-the-oppressed-today-it-s-against-the-oppressor/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Those type of whites who are always going to jail with Negroes are the ones who tell Negroes to be loving and be kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/those-type-of-whites-who-are-always-going-to-jail-with-negroes-are/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [We Muslims believe that the white race, which is guilty of having oppressed and exploited and enslaved our people here in America, should and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/we-muslims-believe-that-the-white-race-which-is-guilty-of-having/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [I mean a real police state just to get a token recognition of a law. It take, it took, I think, 15,000 troops and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-mean-a-real-police-state-just-to-get-a-token-recognition-of-a-law/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Like Samson, I am ready to pull down the white man's temple, knowing full well that I will be destroyed by the falling rubble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/like-samson-i-am-ready-to-pull-down-the-white-man-s-temple-knowing/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Any negro who occupies a position that was given to him by the white man, if you analyze his function, his function never enables…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/any-negro-who-occupies-a-position-that-was-given-to-him-by-the-white/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Stumbling is not falling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/stumbling-is-not-falling/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [God is going to punish the white man for his misdeeds toward black people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/god-is-going-to-punish-the-white-man-for-his-misdeeds-toward-black/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Much of what I say might sound like it's stirring up trouble, but it's the truth!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/much-of-what-i-say-might-sound-like-it-s-stirring-up-trouble-but-it-s/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [I believe in the brotherhood of all men, but I don't believe in wasting brotherhood on anyone who doesn't want to practice it with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-believe-in-the-brotherhood-of-all-men-but-i-don-t-believe-in/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) [Explore all 891 Malcolm X quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) ## More Crime quotes > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [“Crime and punishment can be summed up in two classifications: there are bad people and there are people who get into bad situations. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnnie-dent-jr/crime-and-punishment-can-be-summed-up-in-two-classifications-there/) [Johnnie Dent Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnnie-dent-jr/) > [With 'Pretty Girls,' I saw the opportunity to talk not just about crime but what crime leaves behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/with-pretty-girls-i-saw-the-opportunity-to-talk-not-just-about-crime/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [“The jailers, the Court, everyone in that building – it wasn’t about justice; it was about obedience and intimidation…about maintaining order. Fear accomplished that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-allan/the-jailers-the-court-everyone-in-that-building-it-wasn-t-about/) [Jay Allan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-allan/) > [Taking notes while watching Forensic Files and Snapped. I don't want to make the same mistakes the criminals do! ;)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/taking-notes-while-watching-forensic-files-and-snapped-i-don-t-want/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [Nations sometimes flourish by denying the crimes that brought them into being. Only when the original invasion, occupation, extermination or usurpation has been safely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/nations-sometimes-flourish-by-denying-the-crimes-that-brought-them/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [The danger that may really threaten (crime fiction) is that soon there will be more writers than readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/the-danger-that-may-really-threaten-crime-fiction-is-that-soon-there/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [“a crime to fell a tree and light it on fire, where coals of hardened shit warmed and stunk up homes,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/a-crime-to-fell-a-tree-and-light-it-on-fire-where-coals-of-hardened/) [Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/) > [A great read; an exciting, frightening account of organized crime today. But like all important works of nonfiction, it goes further… This book is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/le-ly-hayslip/a-great-read-an-exciting-frightening-account-of-organized-crime-today/) [Le Ly Hayslip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/le-ly-hayslip/) > [History is the study of the world's crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/history-is-the-study-of-the-world-s-crime/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [If it comes to a question of law, the charges they brought against me - the Espionage Act - is called the quintessential political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-it-comes-to-a-question-of-law-the-charges-they-brought-against-me/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [Too much virtue can be criminal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-racine/too-much-virtue-can-be-criminal/) [Jean Racine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-racine/) > [The federal prison population increased by almost 800 percent between 1980 and 2013, often at a far faster rate than the Bureau of Prisons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-yates/the-federal-prison-population-increased-by-almost-800-percent-between/) [Sally Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-yates/) > [ \[P\]rogress, however, has not sufficiently infiltrated the Interior Ministry, affording protection to those who participated in the Bytyqi murders and other egregious Milosevic-era crimes. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avis-bohlen/p-rogress-however-has-not-sufficiently-infiltrated-the-interior/) Avis Bohlen [Browse all 8,359 Crime quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "That is a lie. 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