By In November of 1960, a 6-year-old named Ruby made history by becoming the first Black child to integrate an all-white elementary school in the Southern United States. Accompanied by four U.S. Marshals, Ruby Bridges exhibited remarkable courage as she crossed the William Frantz Elementary School threshold. On that pivotal day, as she embarked on her journey to education, she found herself confined to the principal’s office. Unfortunately, neither she nor her mother received a single word of communication from anyone present. These experiences are beautifully encapsulated in Ruby Bridges’ quotes, which shed light on her journey of courage, determination, and the importance of standing up for justice.
The following day, white parents decided to withdraw their children from the school, leaving Ruby as the sole student in her class for a year. Despite confronting a gathering of displeased white residents daily, Ruby persevered, returning each day. Her determination eventually transformed her into a civil rights icon, forging a path to ensure that generations of African-American students attain equal educational opportunities.
Here are powerful Ruby Bridges quotes to celebrate her incredible life and legacy.
Best Ruby Bridges Quotes
1. If my mama said not to do something, I didn’t do it.
Ruby Bridges
2. We may not all be equally guilty. But we are all equally responsible for building a decent and just society.
Ruby Bridges
3. 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.
Ruby Bridges
4. Racism is a form of hate. We pass it on to our young people. When we do that, we are robbing children of their innocence.
Ruby Bridges
5. Racism is a grown-up disease, and we should stop using our kids to spread it.
Ruby Bridges
6. My mother had taught me that the only thing you could depend on was your faith, and I had that.
Ruby Bridges
7. You cannot look at a person and tell whether they’re good or bad.
Ruby Bridges
8. Evil isn’t prejudiced. It doesn’t care what you look like; it just wants a place to rest. It’s up to you whether you give it that place.
Ruby Bridges
9. We have tolerance, respect, and equality in our written laws but not in the hearts of some of our people.
Ruby Bridges
10. I believe that we have to come together, and we have to rely on the goodness of each other.
Ruby Bridges
Ruby Bridges Quote
11. The greatest lesson I learned that year in Mrs. Henry’s class was the lesson Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., tried to teach us all: Never judge people by the color of their skin. God makes each of us unique in ways that go much deeper.
Ruby Bridges
12. I believe it doesn’t do yourself any good to hate.
Ruby Bridges
13. I do think that some people are born as old souls.
Ruby Bridges
14. When I think about our babies today and them not being safe in school, I think that should be the next civil rights movement, you know, is to ban the assault weapons so that our babies can be safe.
Ruby Bridges
15. We all have a common enemy, and it is evil.
Ruby Bridges
16. 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.
Ruby Bridges
17. I believe in my prayers.
Ruby Bridges
18. Evil looks like you and I. I know what evil looks like, and I know that it comes in all shades and colors.
Ruby Bridges
19. We must absolutely take care of one another.
Ruby Bridges
20. I was the first black child to desegregate the all-white William Frantz Elementary School in Louisiana in 1960.
Ruby Bridges
21. I wanted to use my experience to teach kids that racism has no place in hearts and minds.
Ruby Bridges
22. A lot of my strength came from my upbringing.
Ruby Bridges
23. I want to inspire kids.
Ruby Bridges
24. Kids come into the world with clean hearts, fresh starts.
Ruby Bridges
25. I felt like there was something I needed to do – speaking to kids and sharing my story with them and helping them understand racism has no place in the minds and hearts of children.
Ruby Bridges
26. That’s really what my work is all about – bringing kids together.
Ruby Bridges
27. I think racism is something that is passed on and taught to our kids, and that’s a shame.
Ruby Bridges
28. My mother and our pastor always said you have to pray for your enemies and people who do you wrong, and that’s what I did.
Ruby Bridges
29. I pray for my enemies, that God would forgive them.
Ruby Bridges
30. I remember the first time seeing myself on TV when my family was watching the documentary ‘Eyes on the Prize’ for the first time. There were pictures of people going up the school stairs, and Mom said, ‘Oh, that’s you!’ I said, ‘I can’t believe this. This is important’.
Ruby Bridges
31. Now that I’m a parent, I know that my parents were incredibly brave.
Ruby Bridges
32. I’ve seen schools in Detroit where the windows are broken, where there’s no heat, and children are sitting with their coats on in class in the middle of a snowstorm. I’ve also seen schools in California with Olympic-sized swimming pools and cafeterias like five-star restaurants.
Ruby Bridges
Quotes From Ruby Bridges
33. I now know that experience comes to us for a purpose, and if we follow the guidance of the spirit within us, we will probably find that the purpose is a good one.
Ruby Bridges
34. God makes each of us unique in ways that go much deeper.
Ruby Bridges
35. History definitely should be taught the way it happened—good, bad or ugly.
Ruby Bridges
36. The person that impacted my life the most would have to have been my father because he shaped me into who I am today.
Ruby Bridges
37. Don’t follow the path. Go where there is no path and begin the trail. When you start a new trail equipped with courage, strength and conviction, the only thing that can stop you is you!
Ruby Bridges
38. 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.
Ruby Bridges
39. When you start a new trail equipped with courage, strength, and conviction, the only thing that can stop you is you!
Ruby Bridges
40. Each and every one of us is born with a clean heart. Our babies know nothing about hate or racism. But soon they begin to learn – and only from us. We keep racism alive. We pass it on to our children. We owe it to our children to help them keep their clean start.
Ruby Bridges
41. If kids have the opportunity to come together to get to know one another, they can judge for themselves who they want their friends to be. All children should have that choice. We, as adults, shouldn’t make those choices for children. That’s how racism starts.
Ruby Bridges
42. Racism is a grown-up disease and we must stop using our children to spread it.
Ruby Bridges
43. Never judge people by the color of their skin.
Ruby Bridges
44. I wish there were enough marshals to walk with every child as they faced the hatred and racism today, and to support, encourage them the way these federal marshals did for me.
Ruby Bridges
45. I think that racism is ugly and so unfair, and I believe that we all need one another.
Ruby Bridges
46. My message is really that racism has no place in the hearts and minds of our children.
Ruby Bridges
47. From age 7 to about 37, I had a normal life and not a very easy one.
Ruby Bridges
48. Please God, forgive these people because even if they say those mean things they don’t know what they’re doing.
Ruby Bridges
49. The only bad thing about burning your bridges behind you is that the world is round.
Ruby Bridges
50. I like to share my story with children, and they are amazed by the story.
Ruby Bridges
51. 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.
Ruby Bridges
52. Wisdom is a gift but has nothing to do with age. That was probably the case with me.
Ruby Bridges
53. None of our kids come into the world knowing anything about disliking one another.
Ruby Bridges
54. 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.
Ruby Bridges
55. I do think that some people are born as old souls.
Ruby Bridges
56. It looked like diamonds, rubies, emeralds; he could think of nothing beautiful which it did not resemble.
Ruby Bridges
57. I had never seen a white teacher before, but Mrs. Henry was the nicest teacher I ever had.
Ruby Bridges
58. Schools should be diverse if we are to get past racial differences.
Ruby Bridges
59. If we are considered to be the greatest country in the world, then shouldn’t we be setting an example for the rest of the world?
Ruby Bridges
60. We cannot prepare any young person to meet the challenges of their world if we falsify the history that he or she is taught.
Ruby Bridges
61. We must give our minds permission to accept and welcome change, rather than fear it
Ruby Bridges
62. Somehow, it always worked. Kneeling at the side of my bed and talking to the Lord made everything okay.
Ruby Bridges
63. That’s really what my work is all about, bringing kids together.
Ruby Bridges
64. Throughout my life, my prayers have actively sustained me — held me up, carried me through.
Ruby Bridges
These quotes from Ruby Bridges have granted you insights into the values of courage, persistence and the significance of advocating for what is just.
Upon contemplating Bridges’ journey, it becomes evident that the lessons she imparted remain pertinent in our present time. Her fearless stance against challenges serves as a reminder that each of us possesses the ability to contribute to a better world.
Her unwavering commitment to positively influence the world, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable difficulties, stands as a tribute to the resilience of the human spirit.
By treading the path she paved and embodying the principles she championed, we can effect substantial change in our lives and those around us.
