Women endure entire lifetimes of these indignities—in the form of catcalls, groping, assault, oppression. These things injure us. They sap our strength. Some of the cuts are so small they’re barely visible. Others are huge and gaping, leaving scars that never heal. Either way, they accumulate. We carry them everywhere, to and from school and work, at home while raising our children, at our places of worship, anytime we try to advance.

More quotes by Michelle Obama

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"Don’t ever underestimate the importance you can have because history has shown us that courage can be contagious and hope can take on a life of its own."

- Michelle Obama

Courage

"Grief and resilience live together."

- Michelle Obama

Resilience

"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

"Success isn’t about how much money you make; it’s about the difference you make in people’s lives."

- Michelle Obama

Leadership

"Your story is what you have, what you will always have. It is something to own."

- Michelle Obama

Self-awareness

More Adversity Quotes

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"Challenges are what make life interesting and overcoming them is what makes life meaningful."

- Joshua J. Marine

Adversity

"The greater the difficulty, the more the glory in surmounting it."

- Epicurus

Adversity

"It is a rough road that leads to the heights of greatness."

- Lucius Annaeus Seneca

Adversity

"The battles that count aren’t the ones for gold medals. The struggles within yourself—the invisible, inevitable battles inside all of us—that’s where it’s at."

- Jesse Owens

Adversity

"If there is no struggle, there is no progress."

- Frederick Douglass

Adversity