--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Homeless shelters, child hunger, and…" description: "\"Homeless shelters, child hunger, and child suffering have become normalized in the richest nation on earth. It's time to reset our moral compass and re..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/608/marian-wright-edelman-2216_children_homeless-shelters-child-hunger-and-child_1827408.png" --- # Homeless shelters, child hunger, and child suffering have… ![“Homeless shelters, child hunger, and child suffering have become normalized in the richest nation on earth. It's time to reset our moral compass and redefine how we measure success.” quote by Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/608/marian-wright-edelman-2216_children_homeless-shelters-child-hunger-and-child_1827408.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/608/marian-wright-edelman-2216_children_homeless-shelters-child-hunger-and-child_1827408.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/608/marian-wright-edelman-2216_children_homeless-shelters-child-hunger-and-child_1827408.png) > “Homeless shelters, child hunger, and child suffering have become normalized in the richest nation on earth. It's time to reset our moral compass and redefine how we measure success.” [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Societal neglect of vulnerable children in a wealthy nation calls for a moral reset and new success metrics. **In simple terms:** Rich nations ignore child suffering; need new values. Key Takeaway Prioritize child welfare over profit. Themes poverty child welfare morality Mood urgent empathetic Type activist inspirational When to use this quote - policy reform - community programs - education - healthcare Key Concepts social justice ethics Questions to Reflect On - How can we redefine success? - What actions can reduce child hunger? A Different Perspective Changing deep‑seated attitudes is slow and contested. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Compass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compass/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Homeless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/homeless/) [Hunger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hunger/) [Measure of success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/measure-of-success/) [Measure Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/measure-success/) [Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral/) [Moral compass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-compass/) [Nations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nations/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Reset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reset/) [Reset Moral](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reset-moral-2244643/) [Shelter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shelter/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) [Suffering Normalized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering-normalized-2244644/) ## Related quotes > [“To live the lives we truly want and deserve, and not just the lives we settle for, we need a Third Metric, a third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arianna-huffington/to-live-the-lives-we-truly-want-and-deserve-and-not-just-the-lives-we/) [Arianna Huffington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arianna-huffington/) > [A true measure of success is just to work hard and get my music out there and just be myself and be real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-beckett/a-true-measure-of-success-is-just-to-work-hard-and-get-my-music-out/) [William Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-beckett/) > [That should be the measure of success for everyone. It's not money, it's not fame, it's not celebrity; my index of success is happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lupe-fiasco/that-should-be-the-measure-of-success-for-everyone-it-s-not-money-it/) [Lupe Fiasco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lupe-fiasco/) > [Money is not the ultimate point, but it remains the actual measure of success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-meaden/money-is-not-the-ultimate-point-but-it-remains-the-actual-measure-of/) [Deborah Meaden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-meaden/) > [It wasn't until I'd met everyone else's measure of success that I realized I'd failed myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-remender/it-wasn-t-until-i-d-met-everyone-else-s-measure-of-success-that-i/) [Rick Remender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-remender/) > [We wanted to make a living, but success was creating a song that we enjoyed playing. Quite honestly, that is still a measure of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-ramsey/we-wanted-to-make-a-living-but-success-was-creating-a-song-that-we/) [Matthew Ramsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-ramsey/) > [I think your children are your measure of success, regardless of work and career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-rhys-davies/i-think-your-children-are-your-measure-of-success-regardless-of-work/) [John Rhys-Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-rhys-davies/) > [Starting in high school and continuing through our higher education system, we must ensure our students are on the right path to acquiring marketable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-mccrory/starting-in-high-school-and-continuing-through-our-higher-education/) [Pat McCrory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-mccrory/) > [I measure success in terms of the connection with the audience, which we've been able to do in spades. I mean, it's very hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-freston/i-measure-success-in-terms-of-the-connection-with-the-audience-which/) [Tom Freston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-freston/) > [I don't measure success by how many buildings have my name on it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/i-don-t-measure-success-by-how-many-buildings-have-my-name-on-it/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [“one measure of success in life is a moment of contentment derived from deep fellowship and hard work, the”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-mott-freeman/one-measure-of-success-in-life-is-a-moment-of-contentment-derived/) [Sally Mott Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-mott-freeman/) > [I can only tell you one thing I've learned. Enjoy the walk along the path you've chosen. Don't count down the days. Make the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-french/i-can-only-tell-you-one-thing-i-ve-learned-enjoy-the-walk-along-the/) [Marilyn French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-french/) > [Do not measure success by today's harvest. Measure success by the seeds you plant today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/do-not-measure-success-by-today-s-harvest-measure-success-by-the/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [How many people you bless is how you measure success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-ross/how-many-people-you-bless-is-how-you-measure-success/) [Rick Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-ross/) > [The more I help out, the more successful I become. But I measure success in what it has done for the people around me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-grant/the-more-i-help-out-the-more-successful-i-become-but-i-measure/) [Adam Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-grant/) ## More by Marian Wright Edelman > [We must always refill and ensure there is a critical mass of leaders and activists committed to nonviolence and racial and economic justice who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/we-must-always-refill-and-ensure-there-is-a-critical-mass-of-leaders/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [It is utterly exhausting being Black in America - physically, mentally, and emotionally. While many minority groups and women feel similar stress, there is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/it-is-utterly-exhausting-being-black-in-america-physically-mentally/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [Justice is not cheap. Justice is not quick. It is not ever finally achieved.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/justice-is-not-cheap-justice-is-not-quick-it-is-not-ever-finally/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [I never thought I was breaking a glass ceiling. I just had to do what I had to do, and it never occurred to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/i-never-thought-i-was-breaking-a-glass-ceiling-i-just-had-to-do-what/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [In my generation, we learned how to be leaders by being exposed to and involved with adults who empowered us and gave us a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/in-my-generation-we-learned-how-to-be-leaders-by-being-exposed-to-and/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [The old notion that children are the private property of parents dies very slowly. In reality, no parent raises a child alone. How many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/the-old-notion-that-children-are-the-private-property-of-parents-dies/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [When Jesus Christ asked little children to come to him, he didn't say only rich children, or White children, or children with two-parent families,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/when-jesus-christ-asked-little-children-to-come-to-him-he-didn-t-say/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [“Don’t feel entitled to anything you don’t sweat and struggle for”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/don-t-feel-entitled-to-anything-you-don-t-sweat-and-struggle-for/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [You can't tell parents to teach children the value of work when we don't have jobs and the jobs we have don't pay a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/you-can-t-tell-parents-to-teach-children-the-value-of-work-when-we/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [To all those mothers and fathers who are struggling with teen-agers, I say, just be patient: even though it looks like you can't do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/to-all-those-mothers-and-fathers-who-are-struggling-with-teen-agers-i/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [It really takes a community to raise children, no matter how much money one has. Nobody can do it well alone. And it's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/it-really-takes-a-community-to-raise-children-no-matter-how-much/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [Democracy cannot breathe, indeed will die, if those enjoined to protect it and uphold the laws snuff it out - with no consequences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/democracy-cannot-breathe-indeed-will-die-if-those-enjoined-to-protect/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [Hunger and malnutrition have devastating consequences for children and have been linked to low birth weight and birth defects, obesity, mental and physical health…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/hunger-and-malnutrition-have-devastating-consequences-for-children/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [We're spending, on average, three times more for prison than for public-school pupils. That's the dumbest investment policy. It doesn't make us safer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/we-re-spending-on-average-three-times-more-for-prison-than-for-public/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) > [You'd better stay determined, because that's how our ancestors got us where we are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-wright-edelman/you-d-better-stay-determined-because-that-s-how-our-ancestors-got-us/) [Marian Wright Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) [Explore all 179 Marian Wright Edelman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-wright-edelman/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. 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