Miriam Makeba (1932–2008) South African singer and civil rights activist
As quoted in Nkrumah, Gamal (1–7 November 2001)
Al-Ahram Weekly interview (2001)
“Poverty is what I am writing about, and I had my first contact with poverty in this slum.”
Source: Down and out in Paris and London (1933), Ch. 1
Context: I am trying to describe the people in our quarter, not for the mere curiosity, but because they are all part of the story. Poverty is what I am writing about, and I had my first contact with poverty in this slum. The slum, with its dirt and its queer lives, was first an object-lesson in poverty, and then the background of my own experiences. It is for that reason that I try to give some idea of what life was like there.
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George Orwell473
English author and journalist 1903–1950Related quotes
Judith Butler (1956) American philosopher and gender theorist
"As a Jew, I was taught it was ethically imperative to speak up" in Haaretz. February 24, 2010
Hunter S. Thompson (1937–2005) American journalist and author
Letter to Arch Gerhart (29 January 1958), p. 106
1990s, The Proud Highway : The Fear and Loathing Letters Volume I (1997)
Source: The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Southern Gentleman, 1955-1967
Context: Events of the past two years have virtually decreed that I shall wrestle with the literary muse for the rest of my days. And so, having tasted the poverty of one end of the scale, I have no choice but to direct my energies toward the acquisition of fame and fortune. Frankly, I have no taste for either poverty or honest labor, so writing is the only recourse left me.
Peter Akinola (1944) Anglican Primate of the Church of Nigeria
Reported in the East African Standard January 2004, now only available online here http://www.thinkinganglicans.org.uk/archives/000985.html.
Jim Yong Kim (1959) Korean-American physician and anthropologist, 12th President of the World Bank
Banker to the Poor, A Conversation With Jim Yong Kim, October, 14
Paul Gauguin (1848–1903) French Post-Impressionist artist
Original: Je suis un grand artiste et je le sais. C'est parce que je le suis que j'ai tellement enduré de souffrances. Pour poursuivre ma voie, sinon je me considérerai comme un brigand. Ce que je suis du reste pour beaucoup de personnes. Enfin, qu'importe! Ce qui me chagrine le plus c'est moins la misère que les empêchements perpétuels à mon art que je ne puis faire comme je le sens et comme je pourais le faire sans la misère qui me lie les bras. Tu me dis que j'ai tort de rester éloigné du centre artistique. Non, j'ai raison, je sais depuis longtemps ce que je fais et pourquoi je le fais. Mon centre artistique est dans mon cerveau et pas ailleurs et je suis fort parce que je ne suis jamais dérouté par les autres et je fais ce qui est en moi.
Source: 1890s - 1910s, The Writings of a Savage (1996), pp. 53-54: Quote in a letter to his wife, Mette (Tahiti, March 1892)
Sheikh Hasina (1947) Prime Minister of Bangladesh
At the UN general assembly to launch the sustainable development goals (SDGs). https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2015/sep/25/sheikh-hasina-i-want-to-make-bangladesh-poverty-free-sustainable-development-goals (25 September 2015)
Brennan Manning book The Ragamuffin Gospel
p. 9 https://books.google.com/books?id=sUTZCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA9 <br class="br">1990s, The Ragamuffin Gospel (1990)
Michael Foot (1913–2010) British politician
Source: Press conference after his election as Labour leader (10 November 1980), quoted in Simon Hoggart and David Leigh, Michael Foot: A Portrait (1981), p. 57 and The Guardian (11 November 1980), p. 1