Ruby Bridges

“A lot of my strength came from my upbringing.”

“Once my school was integrated, and I was there with white kids and a few black kids, it really didn't matter to us what we looked like.”

“If you really think about it, if we begin to teach history exactly the way that it happened - good, bad, ugly, no matter what - I believe that we're going to find that we are closer, more connected than we are apart.”

“All of our schools should be good enough to attract a healthy racial mix, which, I believe, leads to the most effective learning for everybody.”

“I'm the mother of four.”

“I never got the chance to meet Linda Brown; there were several times we were supposed to meet or be on the same stage together, but life gets in the way, and it never happened.”

“Wisdom is a gift but has nothing to do with age. That was probably the case with me.”

“Kids come into the world with clean hearts, fresh starts.”

“If my mama said not to do something, I didn't do it.”

“I believe in my prayers.”

“The mission of the Ruby Bridges Foundation is to create educational opportunities like science camp that allow children from different racial, cultural, and socio-economic backgrounds to build lasting relationships.”

“Our babies know nothing about hate or racism. But soon they begin to learn - and only from us.”

“I like to share my story with children, and they are amazed by the story.”

“Every day, I would show up, and there were no kids, just me and my teacher in my classroom. Every day, I would be escorted by marshals past a mob of people protesting and boycotting the school. This went on for a whole year.”

“The people I passed every morning as I walked up the school's steps were full of hate. They were white, but so was my teacher, who couldn't have been more different from them. She was one of the most loving people I had ever known.”

“We'd get these boxes of clothing in the mail, and my mom would say, 'What makes you think all this is for you? You've got a sister right behind you.' So then I realized, we're all in this together. We have to help each other.”

“Racism is a grown-up disease, and we should stop using our kids to spread it.”

“I want to inspire kids.”

“From age 7 to about 37, I had a normal life and not a very easy one.”

“I do think that some people are born as old souls.”