135 Women Empowerment Quotes for Gender Equality

Gender equality is the first and foremost human right of women. When women live safe, fulfilled and productive lives, they reach their full potential. We have achieved much in recent history on the path to gender equality and women empowerment, but the road to women empowerment remains long and ever-shifting. Today’s influential female voices have given us hope that we’re headed in the right direction. We have curated Empowering Quotes from some of the strongest women in the history. Here are women empowerment quotes to emphasize womanhood.

Women Empowerment Quotes

1. “Women are always saying, ‘We can do anything that men can do.’ But men should be saying, ‘We can do anything that women can do.’” ~ Gloria Steinem

2. “When I’m tired, I rest. I say, ‘I can’t be a superwoman today.’” ~ Jada Pinkett Smith

3. Hear me as a woman
   Have me as your sister
   On purpled battlefield breaking day,
   So I might say our victory is just beginning,
   See me as change,
   Say I am movement,
   That I am the year
   And I am the era
   Of the women.
   ~ Amanda Gorman

4. “It took me quite a long time to develop a voice and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent.” ~ Madeleine Albright

5. “I raise up my voice – not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard. … We cannot all succeed when half of us are held back.” ~ Malala Yousafzai

6. “Feminism isn’t about making women stronger. Women are already strong, it’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength.” ~ G.D. Anderson

7. “There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish.” ~ Michelle Obama

8. “I am a woman and a warrior. If you think I can’t be both, you’ve been lied to.” ~ Jennifer Zeynab Joukhadar
9. “I have chosen to no longer be apologetic for my femaleness and my femininity. And I want to be respected in all of my femaleness because I deserve to be.”~ Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
10. “I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is: I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat.” ~ Rebecca West

Quotes on Women Empowerment

11. “I’m always perpetually out of my comfort zone.” ~ Tory Burch
12. Whatever the problem, be part of the solution. Don’t just sit around raising questions and pointing out obstacles.” ~ Tina Fey
13. “A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle.” ~ Irina Dunn
14. “I am always busy, which is perhaps the chief reason why I am always well.” ~ Elizabeth Cady Stanton
15. “More than ever, I am aware of the need to support and celebrate each other. I like to believe I am part of a global support group network of 3.4 billion. Imagine: if you can fall back on the 3.5 billion sisters, and the many good men who are with us, what could we possibly not achieve?” ~ Nicole Kidman
16. “Men often ask me, ‘Why are your female characters so paranoid?’ It’s not paranoia. It’s recognition of their situation.” ~ Margaret Atwood
17. “I believe the rights of women and girls is the unfinished business of the 21st century.” ~ Hillary Clinton
18. “Women are leaders everywhere you look—from the CEO who runs a Fortune 500 company to the housewife who raises her children and heads her household. Our country was built by strong women, and we will continue to break down walls and defy stereotypes.” ~ Nancy Pelosi
19. “Women have to harness their power-it’s absolutely true. It’s just learning not to take the first ‘no’. And if you can’t go straight ahead, you go around the corner.” ~ Cher
20. “A woman with a voice is, by definition, a strong woman.” ~ Melinda Gates

Also Read: Women’s Day Quotes

Thoughts on Women Empowerment

21. “The thing women have yet to learn is nobody gives you power. You just take it.” ~ Roseanne Barr
22. “I learned a long time ago that there is something worse than missing the goal, and that’s not pulling the trigger.” ~ Mia Hamm
23. “If you’re someone people count on, particularly in difficult moments, that’s a sign of a life lived honorably.” ~ Rachel Maddow
24. “Nothing liberates our greatness like the desire to help, the desire to serve.” ~ Marianne Williamson
25. “A feminist is anyone who recognizes the equality and full humanity of women and men.” ~ Gloria Steinem
26. “We need women at all levels, including the top, to change the dynamic, reshape the conversation, to make sure women’s voices are heard and heeded, not overlooked and ignored.” ~ Sheryl Sandberg
27. “Women will be hidden no more. We will not remain hidden figures. We have names. … It was woman that gave you Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It was woman that gave you Malcolm X. And according to the Bible, it was a woman that gave you Jesus. Don’t you ever forget it.” ~ Janelle Monáe
28. “No woman should be told she can’t make decisions about her own body. When women’s rights are under attack, we fight back.” ~ Kamala Harris
29. “We need to reshape our own perception of how we view ourselves. We have to step up as women and take the lead.” ~ Beyonce
30. “The biggest barrier for women is the thought that they can’t have it all.” ~ Cathy Engelbert

Women’s Empowerment Quotes

31. “I attribute my success to this: I never gave or took any excuse.” ~ Florence Nightingale
32. “My coach said I run like a girl. And I said if he ran a little faster, he could too.” ~ Mia Hamm
33. “A woman is like a teabag; you never know how strong it is until it’s in hot water.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
34. “This is your moment. Own it.” ~ Oprah Winfrey
35. “Whether I am meant to or not, I challenge assumptions about women. I do make some people uncomfortable, which I’m well aware of, but that’s just part of coming to grips with what I believe is still one of the most important pieces of unfinished business in human history—empowering women to be able to stand up for themselves.” ~ Hillary Clinton
36. “You can’t be that kid standing at the top of the waterslide, overthinking it. You have to go down the chute.” ~ Tina Fey
37. “Women’s freedom is the sign of social freedom.” ~ Rosa Luxemburg
38. “The more I have spoken about feminism the more I have realized that fighting for women’s rights has too often become synonymous with man-hating. If there is one thing I know for certain, it is that this has to stop.” ~ Emma Watson
39. “In the future, there will be no female leaders. There will just be leaders.”~ Sheryl Sandberg
40. “The most effective way to do it, is to do it.” ~ Amelia Earheart

Feminist Quotes

41. “I’m a feminist. I’ve been a female for a long time now. It’d be stupid not to be on my own side.” ~ Maya Angelou
42. “Feminism is about giving women choice. Feminism is not a stick with which to beat other women with.” ~ Emma Watson
43. “Here’s my feeling: For everyone, men and women, it’s important to be a feminist. It’s important to have female characters. It’s wonderful for women to mentor other women, but it’s just as important for women to mentor men and vice-versa.” ~ Mindy Kaling
44. “Feminism is not just about women; it’s about letting all people live fuller lives.” ~ Jane Fonda
45. “Feminism is the radical notion that women are people.” ~ Marie Shear
46. “Feminism is not a dirty word. It does not mean you hate men. It does not mean you hate girls that have nice legs and a tan, and it does not mean you are a bitch or a dyke, it means you believe in equality.” ~ Kate Nash
47. “Girls should never be afraid to be smart.” ~ Emma Watson
48. “You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” ~ Mae West
49. “If you find someone you love in your life, then hang on to that love.” ~ Princess Diana
50. “I don’t like the marginalization of women when the fighting breaks out. We get to fight too.” ~ J.K. Rowling

Women Empowerment Quotes

51. “Cautious, careful people, always casting about to preserve their reputations can never effect a reform.” ~Susan B. Anthony
52. “I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational creatures. None of us want to be in calm waters all our lives.” ~ Jane Austen
53. “Many receive advice, only the wise profit from it.” ~ Harper Lee
54. “I am too intelligent, too demanding, and too resourceful for anyone to be able to take charge of me entirely. No one knows me or loves me completely. I have only myself” ~ Simone de Beauvoir
55. “Justice is about making sure that being polite is not the same thing as being quiet. In fact, often times, the most righteous thing you can do is shake the table.” ~ Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez
56. “I never dreamed about success. I worked for it.”~ Estée Lauder
57. “Hard work keeps the wrinkles out of the mind and spirit.” ~ Helena Rubinstein
58. “All careers go up and down like friendships, like marriages, like anything else, and you can’t bat a thousand all the time.” ~ Julie Andrews
59. “Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim.” ~ Nora Ephron
60. “Freeing yourself was one thing, claiming ownership of that freed self was another.” ~ Toni Morrison

Woman Empowerment Quote

61. “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt
62. “Courage is like a muscle. We strengthen it by use.” ~ Ruth Gordon
63. “I’d rather regret the things I’ve done than regret the things I haven’t done.” ~ Lucille Ball
64. “I raise up my voice-not so I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard.” ~ Malala Yousafzai
65. “Every woman’s success should be an inspiration to another. We’re strongest when we cheer each other on.” ~ Serena Williams
66. “I am an example of what is possible when girls from the very beginning of their lives are loved and nurtured by people around them. I was surrounded by extraordinary women in my life who taught me about quiet strength and dignity.” ~ Michelle Obama
67. “The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity.” ~ Amelia Earhart
68. “Women, we endure those cuts in so many ways that we don’t even notice we’re cut. We are living with small tiny cuts, and we are bleeding every single day. And we’re still getting up.” ~ Michelle Obama
69. “I can’t think of any better representation of beauty than someone who is unafraid to be herself.” ~ Emma Stone
70. “If you don’t risk anything, you risk even more.” ~ Erica Jong

Women Empowerment Quotes

71. “I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.” ~ Audre Lorde
72. “Women don’t need to find a voice, they have a voice, and they need to feel empowered to use it, and people need to be encouraged to listen.” ~ Meghan Markle
73. “A girl should be two things: Who and what she wants.” ~ Coco Chanel
74. “There’s something so special about a woman who dominates in a man’s world. It takes a certain grace, strength, intelligence, fearlessness, and the nerve to never take no for an answer.” ~ Rihanna
75. “Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another stepping stone to greatness.” ~ Oprah Winfrey
76. “The difference between successful people and others is how long they spend time feeling sorry for themselves.” ~ Barbara Corcoran
77. “Don’t look at your feet to see if you are doing it right. Just dance.” ~ Anne Lamott
78. “To all the little girls who are watching this, never doubt that you are valuable and powerful, and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world to pursue and achieve your own dreams.” ~ Hillary Clinton
79. “I am not ashamed to dress ‘like a woman’ because I don’t think it’s shameful to be a woman.” ~ Iggy Pop
80. “More and more women are realizing that only collective strength and action will allow us to be free to fight for the kind of society that meets basic human needs.” ~ Roxanne Dunbar

Women Empowerment Captions

81. “There is a stubbornness about me that can never bear to be frightened at the will of others. My courage always rises at every attempt to intimidate me.” ~ Jane Austen
82. “Be a first rate version of yourself, not a second rate version of someone else.”~ Judy Garland
83. “Of course I am not worried about intimidating men. The type of man who will be intimidated by me is exactly the type of man I have no interest in.” ~ Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
84. “I do not wish women to have power over men; but over themselves.” ~ Mary Shelley
85. “A huge part of being a feminist is giving other women the freedom to make choices you might not necessarily make yourself.” ~ Lena Dunham
86. “The question isn’t who’s going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.” ~ Ayn Rand
87. “Courage, sacrifice, determination, commitment, toughness, heart, talent, guts. That’s what little girls are made of; the heck with sugar and spice.”~ Bethany Hamilton
88. “Like art, revolutions come from combining what exists into what has never existed before.” ~ Gloria Steinem
89. “Women, like men, should try to do the impossible. And when they fail, their failure should be a challenge to others.” ~ Amelia Earheart
90. “Figure out who you are separate from your family, and the man or woman you’re in a relationship with. Find who you are in this world and what you need to feel good alone. I think that’s the most important thing in life. Find a sense of self because with that, you can do anything else.” ~ Angelina Jolie

Quotes by Strongest Women

91. “Just don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do. Where there is love and inspiration, I don’t think you can go wrong.” ~ Ella Fitzgerald
92. “We do not need magic to transform our world. We carry all of the power we need inside ourselves already.” ~ J.K. Rowling
93. “My mother told me to be a lady. And for her, that meant to be your own person, be independent.” ~ Ruth Bader Ginsburg
94. “You can’t please everyone, and you can’t make everyone like you.” ~ Katie Couric
95. “One of the secrets to staying young is to always do things you don’t know how to do, to keep learning.” ~ Ruth Reichl
96. I have learned that as long as I hold fast to my beliefs and values – and follow my own moral compass – then the only expectations I need to live up to are my own.” ~ Michelle Obama
97. “It’s important to teach our female youth that it’s OK to say, ‘Yes, I am good at this,’ and you don’t hold back.” ~ Simone Biles
98. “You could certainly say that I’ve never underestimated myself. There’s nothing wrong with being ambitious.” ~ Angela Merkel
99. “A strong woman understands that the gifts such as logic, decisiveness, and strength are just as feminine as intuition and emotional connection. She values and uses all of her gifts.” ~ Nancy Rathburn
100. “If you want something said, ask a man; if you want something done, ask a woman.” ~ Margaret Thatcher

Women Empowerment Quotes

101. “And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.” ~ Anais Nin
102. “Each time a woman stands up for herself, she stands up for all women.” ~ Maya Angelou
103. “Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. … It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.” ~ Ruth Bader Ginsburg
104. ‘We’ve begun to raise daughters more like sons, but few have the courage to raise our sons more like our daughters.” ~ Gloria Steinem
105. “You deserve to be here. You deserve to exist. And, you deserve to take up space in this world of men.” ~ MacKenzi Lee
106. “When I believe in something, I’m like a dog with a bone.” ~ Melissa McCarthy
107. “Who made man the exclusive judge, if women partake with him the gift of reason?” ~ Mary Wollstonecraft
108. “Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained.” ~ Marie Curie
109. “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I’ll try again tomorrow.” ~ Mary Anne Radmacher
110. “I think the best role models for women are people who are fruitfully and confidently themselves, who bring light into the world.” ~ Meryl Streep

Empowering Women Quotes

111. “Men are afraid that women will laugh at them. Women are afraid that men will kill them.” ~ Margaret Atwood
112. “What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.” ~ Jane Goodall
113. “I always thought that people told you that you’re beautiful-that this was a title that was bestowed upon you … I think that it’s time to take this power into our own hands and to say, ‘You know what? I’m beautiful. I just am. And that’s my light. I’m just a beautiful woman.’”~ Margaret Cho
114. “Women will only have true equality when men share with them the responsibility of bringing up the next generation.” ~ Ruth Bader Ginsburg
115. “Imperfections are beauty, madness is genius, and it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.”~ Marilyn Monroe
116. “Responsibility to yourself means refusing to let others do your thinking, talking, and naming for you; it means learning to respect and use your own brains and instincts; hence, grappling with hard work.” ~ Adrienne Rich
117. “Security is mostly a superstition. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.” ~ Helen Keller
118. “Find ecstasy in life; the mere sense of living is joy enough.” ~ Emily Dickinson
119. “I’m not going to limit myself just because people won’t accept the fact that I can do something else.” ~ Dolly Parton
120. “I choose to make the rest of my life the best of my life.” ~ Louise Hay

Women Empowerment Quotes

121. “It’s hard not to be a fighter when you’re constantly under siege.” ~ Cassandra Duffy
122. “When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hold on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.” ~ Harriet Beecher Stowe
123. “We may encounter many defeats, but we must not be defeated.” ~ Maya Angelou
124. “Men should think twice before making widowhood women’s only path to power.” ~ Gloria Steinem
125. “Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.” ~ Mother Teresa
126. “Behind every great woman… is another great woman.” ~ Kate Hodges
127. You are more powerful than you know; you are beautiful just as you are.” ~ Melissa Etheridge
128. “Doubt is a killer. You just have to know who you are and what you stand for.” ~ Jennifer Lopez
129. “The price way pay for being ourselves is worth it.” ~ Eartha Kitt
130. “The only thing required to be a woman is to identify as one.” ~ Amanda Lovelace

Quotes about Women Empowerment

131. “We need to encourage girls that their voice matters. I think there are hundreds and thousands of Malalas out there.” ~ Malala Yousafzai
132. “I try to live in a little bit of my own joy and not let people steal it or take it.” ~ Hoda Kotb
133. “No one changes the world who isn’t obsessed.” ~ Billie Jean King
134. “I want to build a community where women of all races can communicate and … continue to support and take care of each other. I want to give women a space to feel their own strength and tell their stories. That is power.” ~ Beyonce
135. “It has been women who have breathed gentleness and care into the harsh progress of mankind.” ~ Queen Elizabeth II

Want more powerful women quotes?

Check out…

• Oprah Winfrey Quotes
• Maya Angelou Quotes
• Helen Keller Quotes
• Queen Elizabeth II Quotes
• Mother Teresa Quotes

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