A curated register of quotes from under-represented voices.

“ Sound is a social currency. ”

— Christine Sun Kim

“ As a deaf person living in a world of sound, it's as if I was living in a foreign country, blindly following its rules, customs, behaviors, and norms without ever questioning them. ”

— Christine Sun Kim

“ I truly believe American Sign Language is important because from the beginning, when a child is born, if they learn ASL, they have full access to information. ”

— Christine Sun Kim, 2017

“ I am my own muse. I am the subject I know best. ”

— Frida Kahlo

“ I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way. ”

— Georgia O'Keeffe

“ I mostly have to think about identity when it's imposed on me. When people on the street send slurs my way. When forms require me to pick a gender. ”

— Alok Vaid-Menon

“ There are as many genders as there are people. ”

— Alok Vaid-Menon, 2022

“ You can start late, look different, be uncertain, and still succeed. ”

— Misty Copeland

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

— Riz Ahmed

“ I use my platform for more than just myself. To neglect the political is to neglect what essentially is your job of storytelling. ”

— Zendaya

“ We need to start focusing on bravery over perfection. We're raising our girls to be perfect, and we're raising our boys to be brave. ”

— Reshma Saujani, 2016

“ The man or the woman in whom resides greater virtue is the higher; neither the loftiness nor the lowliness of a person lies in the body according to the sex, but in the perfection of conduct and virtues. ”

— Christine de Pizan, 1405

“ I want to reframe the narrative for the industry and allow everyone to express themselves authentically. ”

— Beckie Taylor

“ Stop assuming we're incompetent. We are talented; we work hard. It's just ableism, the assumption that people with disabilities are inferior, that gets in our way. ”

— Haben Girma, 2019

“ I remember looking around and noticing the lack of women in the workspace and I knew this had to change. ”

— Vanessa Vallely

“ Your silence will not protect you. ”

— Audre Lorde, 1977

“ Women can help turn the world right side up. We bring a more collaborative approach to government. And if we do not participate, then the decisions will be made without us. ”

— Wilma Mankiller, 1993

“ I believe in embracing my vulnerability to inspire and impact others. ”

— Beckie Taylor

“ Where there is a tree to plant, plant it yourself. ”

— Gabriela Mistral

“ We're proud of what we've achieved but recognise that gender is the tip of the iceberg. ”

— Amy Lynch, 2018

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

— Marlee Matlin