25 Cesar Chavez Quotes that Will Motivate You into Action

Get ready to be motivated into making a difference with these Cesar Chavez quotes.

If you know the name Martin Luther King Jr., you should also know the name Cesar Chavez.

However, many people don’t.

While he wasn’t known for being the great speaker that Dr. King was known for, he had a soft-spoken and peaceful approach to civil rights in another area that led to important changes.

Born into a Mexican American family, Cesar Chavez spent the early part of his working career as a manual laborer.

This led him to see the injustice that was taking place with most farm workers, many of who were of Latino descent.

The actions that he took helped to better the workforce and treatment of many and he became known as the most famous Latino American civil rights activist.

His action, passion, and insight will inspire you to take action of your own.

If you like this article, we suggest you explore our most popular quotes article, a list of short inspirational quotes for daily encouragement. 

Look through our complete collection of inspirational quotes here.

Cesar Chavez Quotes on Working with others

1. “You are never strong enough where you don’t need help.” – Cesar Chavez

2. “The end of all knowledge should be service to others.” – Cesar Chavez

3. “Students must have initiative; they should not be mere imitators. They must learn to think and act for themselves, and be free.” – Cesar Chavez

4. “You must become a servant of the people. When you do, you can demand their commitment in return.” – Cesar Chavez

5. “The people united will never be defeated.” – Cesar Chavez

6. “Together, all things are possible.” – Cesar Chavez

7. “To be a man is to suffer for others.” – Cesar Chavez

8. “When you have people together who believe in something – things happen.” – Cesar Chavez

9. “What is at stake is human dignity. If a man is not accorded respect he cannot respect himself and if he does not respect himself, he cannot demand it.” – Cesar Chavez

10. “There are many reasons for why a man does what he does. To be himself he must be able to give it all. If a leader cannot give it all he cannot expect his people to give anything.” – Cesar Chavez

Cesar Chavez quotes on hard work and action

11. “There is no substitute for hard work, 23 or 24 hours a day. And there is no substitute for patience and acceptance.” – Cesar Chavez

12. “Talk is cheap, it is the way we organize and use our lives every day that tells what we believe in.” – Cesar Chavez

13. “If you’re not frightened that you might fail, you’ll never do the job. If you’re frightened, you’ll work like crazy.” – Cesar Chavez

14. “When a man or woman, young, or old, takes a place on the picket line for even a day or two, he will never be the same again.” – Cesar Chavez

Cesar Chavez quotes on violence

15. “Non-violence is not inaction. It is not discussion. It is not for the timid or weak. Non-violence is hard work. It is the willingness to sacrifice. It is the patience to win.” – Cesar Chavez

16. “The non-violent technique does not depend for its success on the goodwill of the oppressor, but rather on the unfailing assistance of God.” – Cesar Chavez

17. “The first principle of non-violent action is that of non-cooperation with everything humiliating.” – Cesar Chavez

18. “Nonviolence is really tough. You don’t practice nonviolence at conferences; you practice it on the picket-lines.” – Cesar Chavez

19. “In 1968, I became a vegetarian after realizing that animals feel afraid, cold, hungry, and unhappy like we do.” – Cesar Chavez

Cesar Chavez quotes on social change

20. “Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. We have seen the future, and the future is ours.” – Cesar Chavez

21. “Preservation of one’s own culture does not require contempt or disrespect for other cultures.” – Cesar Chavez

22. “We cannot seek achievement for ourselves and forget about progress and prosperity for our community. Our ambitions must be broad enough to include the aspirations and needs of others, for their sake and for our own.” – Cesar Chavez

23. “The fight is never about grapes or lettuce. It is always about people.” – Cesar Chavez

24. “We need in a special way to work twice as hard to help people understand that the animals are fellow creatures, that we must protect them and love them as we love ourselves.” – Cesar Chavez

25. “Only when we have become nonviolent towards all life will we have learned to live well ourselves.” – Cesar Chavez

You might also like these Howard Thurman quotes that helped shape a movement.

What’s your cause?

Hopefully, these Cesar Chavez quotes left you fired up and ready to make a difference in the world.

Whether you want to continue supporting his efforts or work to support a cause of your own, it doesn’t matter.

What does matter, is that you see that each person can make a difference.

You don’t have to be a professional speaker, start out on a huge platform, or be college-educated to make a difference.

You can make a difference today just as you are.

Allow these quotes to inspire you towards action.

Every little thing accomplished can help make a real and lasting change.

Which of these Cesar Chavez quotes resonated with you best?

Do you have any other inspirational quotes to add?

Fee free to share with us in the comment section below.