A curated register of quotes from under-represented voices.

“ Why not me? ”

— Mindy Kaling, 2015

“ I encourage women to step up. Don't wait for somebody to ask you. ”

— Reese Witherspoon

“ If I was being 'sold' as a commodity of equal value to my male counterpart and worked as hard as him, I couldn't reconcile why I wasn't being remunerated equally. ”

— Cate Blanchett

“ The handicap of deafness is not in the ear; it is in the mind. ”

— Marlee Matlin

“ It's our time to have wage equality once and for all and equal rights for women in the United States of America. ”

— Patricia Arquette, 2015

“ I recognize how hard this is for people, and I recognize how hard it is for me. But I have a certain set of skills that allow me to deal with this stuff. And I realized, with gratitude, optimism is sustainable. ”

— Michael J. Fox, 2023

“ There is hope in the young people out there. And I just want to say to all my peers out there doing the work in the streets: I see you, I admire you, I thank you. ”

— Zendaya, 2020

“ I think having a baby sliced out of you is pretty hardcore. ”

— Ali Wong, 2015

“ There is not an industry I can think of where there is equal pay for equal work, or abuse of power doesn't exist, for men and for women. And so equality is not a political issue, it's a humanitarian issue. ”

— Cate Blanchett, 2018

“ Love isn't a state of perfect caring. It is an active noun like struggle. ”

— Fred Rogers, 2003

“ This is politics for me. This is my life. I had to fight my entire life to get to the place where I could wear a dress to the Oscars. ”

— Billy Porter, 2019

“ If you can't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else? ”

— RuPaul, 2009

“ Blood, sweat and respect. First two you give, the last one you earn. ”

— Dwayne Johnson, 2012

“ Europeans didn't vibe with the way women held power in many Native societies. ”

— Lily Gladstone, 2023

“ Ladies, don't let anybody tell you you are ever past your prime. ”

— Michelle Yeoh, 2023

“ I hope it's a bit of a love letter to everyone who feels different, who feels out of place, to all of the Black women who have walked into rooms and felt like they haven't been welcomed. ”

— Cynthia Erivo, 2024

“ I'm trying to take the stigma off the word ambitious, so we encourage more little girls to be ambitious, because I do think that's how society will change. ”

— Reese Witherspoon

“ It's hard as a young person of a different ethnicity or background to look at the TV and not see anyone who looks like you. ”

— Zendaya, 2016

“ If we truly envision an equal world, it takes equal effort and sacrifice. Today is one of the most indelible days of my life because of Mark Wahlberg, WME and a community of women and men who share in this accomplishment. ”

— Michelle Williams, 2018

“ I must find positive outlets for anger or it will destroy me... the highest positive is forgiveness. ”

— Sidney Poitier, 2000

“ The stories we tell about communities affect the laws that get passed, the people that get attacked, the countries that get invaded. ”

— Riz Ahmed