Good Citizen Quotes

• No one is born a good citizen or a good democrat or a good leader; it takes time and education.

  Kofi Annan

  Leader, Citizens, Born

  69 Copy quote

• Character is far more important than intellect in making a man a good citizen or successful at his calling- meaning by character not only such qualities as honesty and truthfulness, but courage, perseverance and self-reliance.

  Theodore Roosevelt

  Perseverance, Honesty, Character

  Theodore Roosevelt, Paul H. Jeffers (1998). “The Bully Pulpit: A Teddy Roosevelt Book of Quotations”, p.21, Taylor Trade Publications

  28 Copy quote

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• To be a good citizen, it's important to be able to put yourself in other people's shoes and see the big picture. If everything you see is rooted in your own identity, that becomes difficult or impossible.

  Eli Pariser

  Shoes, People, Important

  14 Copy quote

• Good citizenship and defending democracy means living up to the ideals and values that make this country great.

  Ronald Reagan

  Country, Character, Mean

  69 Copy quote

• My fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.

  John F. Kennedy

  Inspirational, Inspiring, Country

  Inaugural Address, 20 Jan. 1961

  192 Copy quote

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• Ants are good citizens: they place group interests first.

  Clarence Day

  Responsibility, Good Day, Firsts

  Clarence Day (1997). “This Simian World”, p.6, Courier Corporation

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• The good citizen will demand liberty for himself, and as a matter of pride he will see to it that others receive the liberty which he thus claims as his own. Probably the best test of true love of liberty in any country is the way in which minorities are treated in that country. Not only should there be complete liberty in matters of religion and opinion, but complete liberty for each man to lead his life as he desires, provided only that in so doing he does not wrong his neighbor.

  Theodore Roosevelt

  Wisdom, Country, Pride

  Citizenship in a Republic - The Man in the Arena, delivered 23 April 1910, Le Sorbonne, University of Paris

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• The first requisite of a good citizen in this Republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his weight; that he shall not be a mere passenger, but shall do his share in the work that each generation of us finds ready to hand; and, furthermore, that in doing his work he shall show, not only the capacity for sturdy self-help, but also self-respecting regard for the rights of others.

  Theodore Roosevelt

  Rights, Self, Hands

  Speech, New York, N.Y., 11 Nov. 1902

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• Character is just another term for "good person." A person of character lives a worthy life guided by moral principles. A person of character is a good parent, a good friend, a good employee and a good citizen.

  Michael Josephson

  Character, Good Friend, Parent

  7 Copy quote

• As young Americans, you have an important responsibility, which is to become good citizens.

  George W. Bush

  Humor, Responsibility, Political

  10 Copy quote

• While we are zealously performing the duties of good citizens and soldiers, we certainly ought not to be inattentive to the higher duties of religion. To the distinguished character of Patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian.

  George Washington

  Christian, Character, Voting

  Philander D. Chase, George Washington, Frank E. Grizzard, Edward G. Lengel, Dorothy Twohig (2006). “The Papers of George Washington: May-June 1778”, University of Virginia Press

  106 Copy quote

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• We pay a price when we deprive children of the exposure to the values, principles, and education they need to make them good citizens.

  Sandra Day O'Connor

  Children, Principles, Needs

  22 Copy quote

• The test of good citizenship is loyalty to country.

  Bainbridge Colby

  Loyalty, Country, Tests

  29 Copy quote

• It is not always the same thing to be a good man and a good citizen.

  Aristotle

  Motivation, Character, Patriotic

  23 Copy quote

• It is a greater thing to be a good citizen than to be a good Republican or a good Democrat.

  Gifford Pinchot

  Citizens, Republican, Democrat

  112 Copy quote

• The World is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion.

  Thomas Paine

  Inspirational, Life, Wisdom

  304 Copy quote

• The first requisite of a good citizen in this republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his own weight.

  Theodore Roosevelt

  Military, Citizens, Weight

  Speech, New York, N.Y., 11 Nov. 1902

  18 Copy quote

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• Bad officials are the ones elected by good citizens who do not vote.

  George Jean Nathan

  Freedom, Democracies Have, Political

  91 Copy quote

• Qualities of Good Citizens... is to admire what others have created in love and faith

  Khalil Gibran

  Quality, Citizens, Faith And Love

  8 Copy quote

• To encourage literature and the arts is a duty which every good citizen owes to his country.

  George Washington

  Education, Country, Art

  Joseph Manca, George Washington (2012). “George Washington's Eye: Landscape, Architecture, and Design at Mount Vernon”, p.176, JHU Press

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• My business is that of every other good citizen - to uphold the law.

  Arthur Conan Doyle

  Law, Citizens

  Arthur Conan Doyle (1989). “Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Stories”, p.1124, Wordsworth Editions

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• It has been well said that 'he who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander.' The two are not the same, but the good citizen ought to be capable of both; he should know how to govern like a freeman, and how to obey like a freeman - these are the virtues of a citizen.

  Aristotle

  Two, Government, Citizens

  Aristotle (2013). “The Essential Aristotle”, p.276, Simon and Schuster

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• No one is born a good citizen; no nation is born a democracy. Rather, both are processes that continue to evolve over a lifetime. Young people must be included from birth. A society that cuts off from its youth severs its lifeline.

  Kofi Annan

  Cutting, People, Democracy

  49 Copy quote

• Each and every child in this country is valuable because they are our future as a society. We cannot afford to lose a single child to ill-health, under-education, abuse, addiction, jail, or gun violence. America's highest goal should be for every child to grow up to be a successful young adult -- healthy, educated, free, secure, and a good citizen.

  John F. Kerry

  Country, Children, Growing Up

  21 Copy quote

• Whatever makes men good Christians, makes them good citizens.

  Daniel Webster

  Christian, Men, Citizens

  Daniel Webster (1830). “Speeches and Forensic Arguments”, p.53

  84 Copy quote

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