"Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country."
- John F. Kennedy
Responsibility
"I say to you that our goal is freedom, and I believe we are going to get there because however much she strays away from it, the goal of America is freedom."
- Martin Luther King Jr.
Hope
"A man's country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers, and woods, but it is a principle and patriotism is loyalty to that principle."
- George William Curtis
Belief
"Duty, honor, country. Those three hallowed words reverently dictate what you ought to be, what you can be, what you will be."
- Gen. Douglas MacArthur
Responsibility
"True patriotism springs from a belief in the dignity of the individual, freedom and equality not only for Americans but for all people on earth…"
- Eleanor Roosevelt
Belief
"One flag, one land, one heart, one hand, One Nation evermore!"
- Oliver Wendell Holmes
Love
"And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country."
- John F. Kennedy
Responsibility
"Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty."
- John F. Kennedy
Courage
"I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country."
- Nathan Hale
Courage
"A man’s country is not a certain area of land, of mountains, rivers and woods, but it is a principle, and patriotism is loyalty to that principle."
- George William Curtis
Belief in Self
"In the face of impossible odds, people who love this country can change it."
- Barack Obama
Inspiration
"True patriotism springs from a belief in the dignity of the individual, freedom and equality not only for Americans but for all people on earth."
- Eleanor Roosevelt
Belief
"Our Constitution is a remarkable, beautiful gift. But it’s really just a piece of parchment. It has no power on its own. We, the people, give it power. We, the people, give it meaning—with our participation, and with the choices that we make and the alliances that we forge."
- Barack Obama
Empowerment
"Freedom is nothing else but a chance to be better."
- Albert Camus
Empowerment
"No man is entitled to the blessings of freedom unless he be vigilant in its preservation."
- General Douglas MacArthur
Courage
"Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it."
- Thomas Paine
Perseverance
"May we think of freedom, not as the right to do as we please, but as the opportunity to do what is right."
- Peter Marshall
Motivation
"Independence now and Independence forever!"
- Daniel Webster
Independence
"Freedom is never granted; it is won."
- A. Philip Randolph
Achievement
"Freedom is the open window through which pours the sunlight of the human spirit and human dignity."
- Herbert Hoover
Empowerment
"I think of a hero as someone who understands the degree of responsibility that comes with his freedom."
- Bob Dylan
Motivation
"This [nation] will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave."
- Elmer Davis
Bravery
"If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear."
- George Orwell
Awareness
"You can’t separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom."
- Malcolm X
Peace
"Freedom lies in being bold."
- Robert Frost
Courage
"We’re blessed with the opportunity to stand for something—for liberty and freedom and fairness. And these are things worth fighting for, worth devoting our lives to."
- Ronald Reagan
Courage
"This is your democracy—make it—protect it—pass it on. You are ready. Go to it."
- Thurgood Marshall
Empowerment
"Our American flag is more than cloth and ink. It is a universally recognized symbol that stands for liberty and freedom. It is the history of our nation, marked by the blood of those who died defending it."
- John Thune
Respect
"We must be free not because we claim freedom, but because we practice it."
- William Faulkner
Motivation
"Freedom and democracy are dreams you never give up."
- Aung San Suu Kyi
Hope
"Patriotism is not short, frenzied outbursts of emotion but the tranquil and steady dedication of a lifetime."
- Adlai Stevenson II
Courage
"Where you see wrong or inequality or injustice, speak out, because this is your country. This is your democracy. Make it. Protect it. Pass it on."
- Thurgood Marshall
Courage
"May the sun in his course visit no land more free, more happy, more lovely, than this our own country!"
- Sen. Daniel Webster
Courage
"The fact is, with every friendship you make, and every bond of trust you establish, you are shaping the image of America projected to the rest of the world."
- Michelle Obama
Connection to Earth
"In the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope."
- Barack Obama
Hope
"Americans never quit. We never surrender. We never hide from history. We make history."
- John McCain
Determination
"We are a nation of many nationalities, many races, many religions-bound together by a single unity, the unity of freedom and equality."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
Connection to Earth
"Patriotism consists not in waving the flag, but in striving that our country shall be righteous as well as strong."
- James Bryce
Belief
"I believe in America because we have great dreams, and because we have the opportunity to make those dreams come true."
- Wendell Willkie
Aspirations
"America, to me, is freedom."
- Willie Nelson
Motivation
"This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave."
- Elmer Davis
Courage
"America is another name for opportunity."
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Aspirations
"Dreams are the foundation of America."
- Lupita Nyong'o
Motivation
"In the truest sense, freedom cannot be bestowed; it must be achieved."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
Belief
"What I can do for my country, I am willing to do."
- Christopher Gadsen
Courage
"Patriotism is like charity—it begins at home."
- Henry James
Belief
"Here is your country. Cherish these natural wonders, cherish the natural resources, cherish the history and romance as a sacred heritage, for your children and your children's children."
- Theodore Roosevelt
Respect
"There’s nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America."
- Bill Clinton
Optimism
"It's better to fight for something in life than to die for nothing."
- Gen. George S. Patton
Courage
"May we never forget our fallen comrades. Freedom isn't free."
- Sgt. Major Bill Paxton
Courage
"Freedom is never really won. You earn it and win it in every generation."
- Coretta Scott King
Responsibility
"We hold our heads high, despite the price we have paid because freedom is priceless."
- Lech Walesa
Belief in Self
"This is your democracy. Make it. Protect it. Pass it on."
- Thurgood Marshall
Empowerment
"Where liberty is, there is my country."
- Benjamin Franklin
Liberation
"America is a tune. It must be sung together."
- Gerald Stanley Lee
Connection to Earth
"Liberty is always dangerous, but it is the safest thing we have."
- Harry Emerson Fosdick
Courage
"The legacy of heroes—the memory of a great name, and the inheritance of a great example."
- Benjamin Disraeli
Achievement
"Patriotism is easy to understand in America; it means looking out for yourself by looking out for your country."
- Calvin Coolidge
Belief
"America is not just a country, it’s an idea."
- Bono
Belief
"Everywhere immigrants have enriched and strengthened the fabric of American life."
- John F. Kennedy
Contribution
"America is known as a country that welcomes people to its shores. All kinds of people."
- Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Compassion
"America – it is a fabulous country, the only fabulous country; it is the only place where miracles not only happen, but where they happen all the time."
- Thomas Wolfe
Optimism
"Heroism doesn’t always happen in a burst of glory. Sometimes small triumphs and large hearts change the course of history."
- Mary Roach
Courage
"Freedom is nothing but a chance to be better."
- Albert Camus
Motivation
"There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured with what is right in America."
- William J. Clinton
Optimism
"Patriotism is when love of your own people comes first; nationalism, when hate for people other than your own comes first."
- Charles de Gaulle
Compassion
"National pride is to countries what self-respect is to individuals: a necessary condition for self-improvement."
- Richard Rorty
Belief in Self
"America is hope. It is compassion. It is excellence. It is valor."
- Paul Tsongas
Motivation