--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We must develop a federal program of…" description: "\"We must develop a federal program of public works, retraining, and jobs for all - so that none, white or black, will have cause to feel threatened . . ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/71e/martin-luther-king-jr-127_american-family_we-must-develop-a-federal-program-of-pub_869667.png" --- # We must develop a federal program of public works… ![“We must develop a federal program of public works, retraining, and jobs for all - so that none, white or black, will have cause to feel threatened . . . There is nothing except shortsightedness to prevent us from guaranteeing an annual minimum and livable income for every American family.” quote by Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/71e/martin-luther-king-jr-127_american-family_we-must-develop-a-federal-program-of-pub_869667.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/71e/martin-luther-king-jr-127_american-family_we-must-develop-a-federal-program-of-pub_869667.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/71e/martin-luther-king-jr-127_american-family_we-must-develop-a-federal-program-of-pub_869667.png) > “We must develop a federal program of public works, retraining, and jobs for all - so that none, white or black, will have cause to feel threatened . . . There is nothing except shortsightedness to prevent us from guaranteeing an annual minimum and livable income for every American family.” [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A universal public works and income program would eliminate economic threats and promote equality for all races. **In simple terms:** Jobs and income for everyone reduce fear and inequality. Key Takeaway Support universal economic security. Themes equality economics social justice Mood hopeful determined Type activist inspirational When to use this quote - policy reform - job training - community development Key Concepts welfare state universal basic income Questions to Reflect On - How to fund universal programs? - What resistance might arise? A Different Perspective Implementation costs and political resistance pose challenges. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-family/) [Annuals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/annuals/) [Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) [Causes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/causes/) [Develop Federal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/develop-federal-939691/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Federal Program](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/federal-program-939692/) [Feel Threatened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-threatened/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) [Income](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/income/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Minimum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/minimum/) [Program](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/program/) [Threatened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threatened/) [Threatened Shortsightedness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threatened-shortsightedness-939693/) [White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/white/) ## Related quotes > [“By comparison, George W. Bush was light and breezy and apparently forgot during one debate that Social Security was a federal program. In fact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-p-pierce/by-comparison-george-w-bush-was-light-and-breezy-and-apparently/) [Charles P. Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-p-pierce/) > [No matter what federal program one selects - Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, the drug war, the income tax and the IRS, education, foreign interventions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-g-hornberger/no-matter-what-federal-program-one-selects-social-security-medicare/) [Jacob G. Hornberger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-g-hornberger/) > [They want the federal government controlling the Social Security, like it's some kind of federal program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/they-want-the-federal-government-controlling-the-social-security-like/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [Federal program and services outlay in Puerto Rico is approximately $10 billion per year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-thornburgh/federal-program-and-services-outlay-in-puerto-rico-is-approximately/) [Dick Thornburgh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-thornburgh/) > [The US needs a cap and trade system with auctioning of licenses for emissions rights. The revenues from these auctions can be used to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/the-us-needs-a-cap-and-trade-system-with-auctioning-of-licenses-for/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [We have a locale-based education system; we have increasing economic segregation. We clearly need a larger federal program to try to help disadvantaged districts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stiglitz/we-have-a-locale-based-education-system-we-have-increasing-economic/) [Joseph Stiglitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stiglitz/) > [If you go out for a jog you feel threatened because all of these men start following you, cat-calling and whistling at you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/momina-mustehsan/if-you-go-out-for-a-jog-you-feel-threatened-because-all-of-these-men/) [Momina Mustehsan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/momina-mustehsan/) > [The thing that makes countries want to pursue some kind of nuclear deterrent is precisely the fact that they feel threatened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-thing-that-makes-countries-want-to-pursue-some-kind-of-nuclear/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Men find powerful women so threatening, and finding a partner was starting to look laughable, because I would be really attracted to guys and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-palmer/men-find-powerful-women-so-threatening-and-finding-a-partner-was/) [Amanda Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-palmer/) > [Cats never feel threatened. They are genetically incapable of accepting that anyone could possibly dislike anything as perfect as a cat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-young/cats-never-feel-threatened-they-are-genetically-incapable-of/) [Kathy Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-young/) > [I think that in the immediate aftermath of a superhuman machine intelligence revealing itself, most people would feel very threatened but take solace in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-casti/i-think-that-in-the-immediate-aftermath-of-a-superhuman-machine/) [John L. Casti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-casti/) > [Whenever you feel threatened or afraid, you should place your hands over your third chakra, right in the middle of your stomach, and breathe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-choquette/whenever-you-feel-threatened-or-afraid-you-should-place-your-hands/) [Sonia Choquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-choquette/) > [Team members who feel threatened but who are not aware of it become rigid - and that stops teamwork.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-schutz/team-members-who-feel-threatened-but-who-are-not-aware-of-it-become/) [William Schutz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-schutz/) > [When we dislike someone, or feel threatened by someone, the natural tendency is to focus on something we dislike about the person, something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-redfield/when-we-dislike-someone-or-feel-threatened-by-someone-the-natural/) [James Redfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-redfield/) > [There's a diversion between economic reality - integration, global village, everybody depending on everybody else - and cultural reality, which is people feeling invaded,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/duncan-green/there-s-a-diversion-between-economic-reality-integration-global/) [Duncan Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/duncan-green/) ## More by Martin Luther King, Jr > [The strong man holds in a living blend strongly marked opposites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-strong-man-holds-in-a-living-blend-strongly-marked-opposites/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Our nation was born in genocide when it embraced the doctrine that the original American, the Indian, was an inferior race. ... We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/our-nation-was-born-in-genocide-when-it-embraced-the-doctrine-that/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Somewhere somebody must have some sense. Men must see that force begets force, hate begets hate, toughness begets toughness. And it is all a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/somewhere-somebody-must-have-some-sense-men-must-see-that-force/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Every genuine expression of love grows out of a consistent and total surrender to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/every-genuine-expression-of-love-grows-out-of-a-consistent-and-total/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character--that is the goal of true education. The complete education gives one not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/we-must-remember-that-intelligence-is-not-enough-intelligence-plus/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I’ve been to the Mountaintop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-ve-been-to-the-mountaintop/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The supreme task is to organize and unite people so that their anger becomes a transforming force.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-supreme-task-is-to-organize-and-unite-people-so-that-their-anger/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The great issue of life is to harness the drum major instinct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-great-issue-of-life-is-to-harness-the-drum-major-instinct/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Somebody must have sense enough and morality enough to cut off the chain of hate and the chain of evil in the universe. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/somebody-must-have-sense-enough-and-morality-enough-to-cut-off-the/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Darkness is only driven out with light, not more darkness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/darkness-is-only-driven-out-with-light-not-more-darkness/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [What seems so necessary today may not even be desirable tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/what-seems-so-necessary-today-may-not-even-be-desirable-tomorrow/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The Negro cannot win the respect of his oppressor by acquiescing; he merely increases the oppressor's arrogance and contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-negro-cannot-win-the-respect-of-his-oppressor-by-acquiescing-he/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The majority of the Negroes who took part in the year-long boycott of Montgomery's buses were poor and untutored; but they understood the essence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-majority-of-the-negroes-who-took-part-in-the-year-long-boycott-of/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Whenever you are engaged in work that serves humanity and is for the building of humanity, it has dignity and it has worth,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/whenever-you-are-engaged-in-work-that-serves-humanity-and-is-for-the/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-have-a-dream-that-one-day-even-the-state-of-mississippi-a-desert/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) [Explore all 1,210 Martin Luther King, Jr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) ## More American family quotes > [In comparative terms, there's no poverty in America by a long shot. Heritage Foundation political scientist Robert Rector has worked up figures showing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/in-comparative-terms-there-s-no-poverty-in-america-by-a-long-shot/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [We want American families to feel more confident in life. We want the next generation to know that yes, the best days of this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/we-want-american-families-to-feel-more-confident-in-life-we-want-the/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [“At the very same time that we witnessed the explosion of white celebrity moms, and the outpouring of advice to a surveillance of middle-class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-j-douglas/at-the-very-same-time-that-we-witnessed-the-explosion-of-white/) [Susan J. Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-j-douglas/) > [To my way of thinking, the American family started to decline when parents began to communicate with their children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/to-my-way-of-thinking-the-american-family-started-to-decline-when/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [“We are taken through the pursuit of the American dream, the establishment of the American family, and a smattering of suspense and intrigue.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikita-allgire/we-are-taken-through-the-pursuit-of-the-american-dream-the/) [Nikita Allgire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikita-allgire/) > [Now we have black and white elected officials working together. Today, we have gone beyond just passing laws. Now we have to create a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lewis/now-we-have-black-and-white-elected-officials-working-together-today/) [John Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lewis/) > [I was completely naive about the business of being an actor. My family didn't go to the theater or to the movies. We watched…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-mcdormand/i-was-completely-naive-about-the-business-of-being-an-actor-my-family/) [Frances McDormand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-mcdormand/) > [“...when President Clinton, on the anniversary of his election, spoke in the church in Tennessee where Martin Luther King, Jr., had delivered his last…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-himmelfarb/when-president-clinton-on-the-anniversary-of-his-election-spoke-in/) [Gertrude Himmelfarb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-himmelfarb/) > [We had a very upwardly mobile economy, and that peaked around the 1950s when the typical middle-class American family consisted of a father with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/we-had-a-very-upwardly-mobile-economy-and-that-peaked-around-the/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [The truth is that family values, as used by the American Family Association, Dan Quayle, and the southern Baptists, has nothing to do with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morris-sullivan/the-truth-is-that-family-values-as-used-by-the-american-family/) [Morris Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morris-sullivan/) > [When I was a kid I got so much help from the Church. 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We will see what happens, but this is a difficult topic that touches every American…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-blunt/i-think-health-care-reform-is-challenging-and-challenged-we-will-see/) [Roy Blunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-blunt/) > [You hear a lot of dialogue on the death of the American family. Families aren't dying. They're merging into big conglomerates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/you-hear-a-lot-of-dialogue-on-the-death-of-the-american-family/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) [Browse all 155 American family quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-family/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We must develop a federal program of public works, retraining, and jobs for all - so that none, white or black, will have cause to feel threatened . . . 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