These Women Remind Us Why We Must Keep The Good Fight Going

The Indian Independence movement was certainly a new chapter not only in the history of the nation but in women's empowerment too. Along with the bloodshed, protest cries, march and the ultimate dawn of Independence, the country also saw a rise in women’s participation in national issues.

For a long time, women in India remained confined in the walls of the house, imperialism and patriarchy. But thanks to the cries of independence that it made women cross the proverbial lakshman rekha and join the men in the national movements.

Today, when we have completed more than 73 years of independence, the stories of the resilience, strength and struggles of these women never fail to inspire our discourse on feminism, life and democracy.

What they said years ago holds even today for women who battle with everyday sexism to achieve their dreams in life. So in this article, we have tried to preserve some out of thousands of golden quotes by women freedom fighters of India. And with these, we strive to inspire any person who has dared to dream and live.

Empowering Quotes By Freedom Fighters

On Freedom

Freedom is not for the timid. - Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, the first female president of the United Nations General Assembly, reminds us that freedom is to speak up and not succumb to any form of dominance.

Freedom comes in three forms. The first is political emancipation from the conqueror, the second is economic and the third is social… India has only achieved the first. - Captain Lakshmi Sahgal, an eminent freedom fighter, an officer of the Indian National Army and the Minister of Women’s Affairs of the Azad Hind Government.

When there is oppression, the only self-respecting thing is to rise and say this shall cease today because my right is justice. - Sarojini Naidu, Nightingale of India, freedom fighter and first woman governor of United Provinces of Agra and Oudh.

On Gender Equality

A country's greatness lies in its undying ideals of love and sacrifice that inspire the mothers of the race. - Sarojini Naidu

Jail is a good experience but it has its drawbacks ... all the disadvantages of married life with none of its compensations. - Vijayalakshmi Pandit

Child Marriage is eating as a canker into the vitality of our national life. Girls become mothers while they are children themselves, and bring into the world offsprings who are in the very nature of things, the victims of disease and ill health. - Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, the first Health Minister of India

Oppression and discrimination must be challenged and fought against. - Savitribai Phule

Oh, we want a new breed of men before India can be cleansed of her disease. - Sarojini Naidu

The abolition of early marriage and purdah…will remove two of the main obstacles in the way of the spread of female education. Needless to say that the position of the widows in Hindu homes, Marriage Laws and laws relating to the inheritance of property by women need radical alteration. - Rajkumari Amrit Kaur

Rajkumari Amrit Kaur PC: Kalinga TV

My father would take my mother and the two children — I had a younger brother, Narayana Rao — to the church, the mosque, or the burning ghat to show us how the bodies were disposed of, perhaps with a view to making us courageous enough to face the inevitable event of death. – Durgabai Deshmukh, popularly known as 'Iron Lady', participated in freedom movements and was a member of Constituent Assembly and Planning Commission of India.

I had then decided to take up the study of law so that I could give women free legal aid and assist them to defend themselves. - Durgabai Deshmukh

On Non-Violence

It is a pity the new generation of political activists and leaders is paying scant respect to Gandhian ideas, the chief among which was non-violence. If we don’t mend our ways, we may find ourselves back at square one. - Usha Mehta who participated in the protest march against Simon Commission at the age of 8 and actively participated in other freedom movements.

The more we sweat in peace, the less we bleed in war. - Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit.

On the Importance Of Education

Education was not merely a means for earning a living or an instrument for the acquisition of wealth. It was an initiation into the life of the spirit, a training of the human soul in the pursuit of truth and the practice of virtue. - Vijayalakshmi Pandit

Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the whole community. - Savitribai Phule

On Hope, Courage And Fights

He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life. - Aruna Asaf Ali, Indian educator and political activist widely remembered for hoisting the national flag at Gowalia Tank Maidan, Bombay during Quit India Movement. 

I know where I am going and I know the truth, and I don’t have to be what you want me to be. I am free to be what I want. - Aruna Asaf Ali

I am not ready to die because it requires infinitely greater courage to live. - Sarojini Naidu

Suggested reading: Why Savitribai Phule And Her Visionary Idols Inspire Me Greatly