Welcome to our collection of feminist quotes, where the power of words converges to inspire, empower, and challenge. Feminism, as a movement, ideology, and philosophy, has been instrumental in advocating for gender equality, dismantling patriarchal structures, and amplifying the voices of marginalized individuals. Throughout history, courageous women and allies have articulated their thoughts, experiences, and aspirations through powerful quotes that continue to resonate across generations.
From groundbreaking activists like Audre Lorde and bell hooks to contemporary thought leaders such as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Malala Yousafzai, the spectrum of feminist voices is vast and diverse. These quotes encapsulate the essence of feminism, addressing issues ranging from reproductive rights and intersectionality to sexism and systemic oppression. Whether through stirring speeches, poignant essays, or succinct declarations, these words have sparked conversations, ignited movements, and catalyzed change.
Below, you’ll find a curated selection of feminist quotes that provoke reflection, spark dialogue, and serve as affirmations of resilience and determination. Feel free to copy them, pair them with imagery, or embellish them with creative typography to further amplify their impact. Let these words serve as reminders of the ongoing pursuit of gender equality and the unwavering commitment to justice and liberation.
I believe and support the feminist movement, but I am not generally interested in considering women’s rights in relation to equality with men, or in a competition with men, but rather within their own rights and feminine space. Shirin Neshat
I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat or a prostitute. Rebecca West
I think the history of western feminism is one that is fraught with racism, and I think it’s important to acknowledge that and, at the same time, to say that feminism is not the western invention, that my great-grandmother in what is now south-western Nigeria is feminist. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
My nature is feminist. How could you not be a feminist and be alive? The world is full of brilliant, interesting women. Ali Smith
I merged those two words, black and feminist, because I was surrounded by black women who were very tough and and who always assumed they had to work and rear children and manage homes. Toni Morrison
A feminist is a person who wants equal things for men and women, and I definitely believe in that. This doesn’t mean I will degrade anyone. In our house, I want my mother and father to have equal importance and that’s the only way to bring up a socially responsible child. Aishwarya Lekshmi
I don’t know why it’s still a taboo to be a feminist. Gemma Arterton
Victorian feminists made the mistake of making membership of the sisterhood conditional on signing up to a particular policy agenda. Marxist feminists made a similar mistake of saying, ‘You can’t be a real feminist unless you join with miners, the unions, the vegans.’ Naomi Wolf
There are 3 billion women in the world, so there are 3 billion ways to be a feminist. Caitlin Moran
I’ll always prefer to play with women and hang out with women, and I’ll always be a feminist. Courtney Love
I think that the same kind of openness and fluidity and willingness to interrogate power that we, as feminists, expect from men in alliance on questions of class should also be the expectation that women of colour can rely upon with our white feminist allies. Kimberle Williams Crenshaw
I want to reduce the stigma of the word ‘feminism.’ It’s not about eliminating and excluding. You can be yourself and still be a feminist. Zoe Buckman
I never said I’m not a feminist! I wrote one column where I was being sarcastic, and I called myself a ‘wombist’. Now which sane person would say that ‘wombist’ is a better term than feminist? I was being sarcastic, and perhaps it was my fault in not getting the point across as clearly as I would have liked to. I don’t think there’s any doubt. Twinkle Khanna
I’m comfortably asocial – a hermit in the middle of a large city, a pessimist if I’m not careful, a feminist, a black, a former Baptist, an oil-and-water combination of ambition, laziness, insecurity, certainty and drive. Octavia E. Butler
I’ve come, even as a feminist, to dread the phrase ‘female friendship,’ because it tends to signal overdetermined relationships. Michelle Dean
Remember that in the early days of the feminist movement, they refused to have a leader; different women would just stand up and speak. The early feminists were very careful to not put what was spontaneously arising back in the old bottle. James Hillman
I would like to think I am feminist in some sorts. Jessie Ware
I’ve never considered myself a feminist, but I’m happy that I’ve been raised as a strong, independent woman. Shruti Haasan
I think every woman in our culture is a feminist. They may refuse to articulate it, but if you were to take any woman back 40 years and say, ‘Is this a world you want to live in?’ They would say, ‘No.’ Helen Mirren
I don’t think I’m inherently feminist. I think the universe wants me to be feminist, and I think I resonate with that. I think it just chose me to be this female energy… thing. And I’m very drawn to female energy, but I don’t really have any prerequisites in feminism. I just roll with it. SZA
People like to watch surfing, but maybe the girls get the wrong kind of promotion and the wrong kind of press. I might be called a feminist for saying it, but it’s like the girls are promoted sexually rather than what they’re achieving. Jessica Fox
We need a feminist movement in which the facts of the case trump the identities of the parties involved. Bari Weiss
Before I was married, I didn’t consider my failure to manage even basic hand tools a feminist inadequacy. I thought it had more to do with being Jewish. The Jews I knew growing up didn’t do ‘do-it-yourself.’ When my father needed to hammer something he generally used his shoe, and the only real tool he owned was a pair of needle-nose pliers. Ayelet Waldman
Being a feminist is being equal to do what a man do. Cardi B
I realized that, as a woman, you have an obligation to be a feminist. Sadie Sink
I don’t really consider myself to be a super feminist. Stormy Daniels
When I was coming of age, I remembered reading and studying the initial ideas within the feminist movement. There was this idea with my parents’ generation that in order to find equality, a woman would need to behave like a man. Bryce Dallas Howard
I started modeling when I was – not older, but not 12. I have a mom who’s a feminist – she’s an English professor, an intellectual. She really gave me the equipment to understand that you can celebrate yourself without putting yourself down or needing to apologize for the way you look. I think that attitude is really crucial for a model. Emily Ratajkowski
I didn’t think of ‘Thelma and Louise’ as a feminist movie. Callie Khouri
With the feminist movement – a good movement which I support – there’s been more overt criticism of the male, an attitude that men are failing to understand the finer nature of women, failing to appreciate their needs, failing to support them, failing to be compassionate. Steven Berkoff
If you are not a feminist in love, you fail to recognise someone who does not love you. Feminism makes love easier. Otherwise, there is the danger of feeling romantically drawn to someone who does not see you as an equal. Gloria Steinem
Women have seen that they have locked themselves up with feminist writing. Nathalie Sarraute
My mom was an orphan, and there was never anybody to tell her what she could or couldn’t do. At the core, she’s probably an artist – an artist and a feminist. Mark Bradford
I wouldn’t really call myself a feminist. I obviously want equality and equal opportunities to the men. Katie Taylor
I would say that I’m a feminist theorist before I’m a queer theorist or a gay and lesbian theorist. Judith Butler
My parents divorced when I was born, and my mother is a political science professor, like a feminist Mormon, which is sort of an oxymoron. Eliza Dushku
I identify as a feminist but subscribe to the pretty basic definition of a feminist as ‘someone who seeks equality between the sexes.’ Lauren Mayberry
Courage to be is the key to revelatory power of the feminist revolution. Mary Daly
I define my work as a feminist act and a political act because I’m black and a woman. You don’t necessarily have to claim that, but the act of making art itself is a political and feminist act when you’re a woman. Mickalene Thomas
I think the main goal of the feminist movement was the status degradation of the full-time homemaker. They really wanted to get all women out of the homes and into the workforce. And again and again, they taught that the only fulfilling lifestyle was to be in the workforce reporting to a boss instead of being in the home reporting to a husband. Phyllis Schlafly
My first marriage was ruined by feminist indoctrination. Mike Cernovich
The issue of gender was never my biggest concern; my biggest concern was doing good work. When the feminist movement really got going, I wasn’t an active part of it because I was more concerned with my own mental pursuits. Patti Smith
A movie about a weak, vulnerable woman can be feminist if it shows a real person that we can empathize with. Natalie Portman
The feminist movement is not about success for women. It is about treating women as victims and about telling women that you can’t succeed because society is unfair to you, and I think that’s a very unfortunate idea to put in the minds of young women because I believe women can do whatever they want. Phyllis Schlafly
I wouldn’t say I’m a feminist, but I don’t like girls pretending to be stupid because it’s easier. Amy Winehouse
To me it’s always been a no-brainer. Maybe I’m just simplistic about it, but if you believe in equality of opportunity, and want to champion equality of opportunity, that makes you a feminist. Fiona Bruce
I don’t know if I’m a feminist, but I just know that I am all for outspoken, powerful women. Mac Miller
‘The Witch’ is feminist. Anya Taylor-Joy
The most empowering feminist act is for women to be taught about the ways babies bond and then decide what they want to do. Mayim Bialik
I’m thankful for the work that feminists like Gloria Steinem have done. I am a feminist, but the geography for women today is vastly different than it was in the ’60s. Amber Heard
There is an amazing feminist writer called Lindy West; she wrote a very nice piece for The New York Times. She wrote about Woody Allen, saying if we can’t go after your work or your career, we will go after your legacy. You will never be remembered the same way. I think a lot of women will have to take solace in that. Richa Chadha
I’m a feminist. I want to fight, but I don’t see many people with this desire to fight for something. Women don’t help each other, especially in fashion. Donatella Versace
If you say, I’m for equal pay, that’s a reform. But if you say. I’m a feminist, that’s a transformation of society. Gloria Steinem
My husband is a fall-away Catholic, but with a vengeance. He’s actually more of a feminist than I am. Olympia Dukakis
The idea of what a feminist is has changed so much that there needs to be a new word for it. Trinny Woodall
Full disclosure: I went to university as an eager young feminist for many reasons – to get away from my parents, to soak up literature and knowledge, to cease being a child, to expand my mind and my world. Janine di Giovanni
There are so many feminist groups that talk about women’s rights. But, there’s domestic violence against men as well. Nobody talks about it because of the social stigma. Luv Ranjan
I’m not particularly a feminist, but if you get women off the animal cycle of reproduction and give them some say in how many children they’ll have, immediately the floor will rise. Christopher Hitchens
To me, a feminist belongs in the same category as a humanist or an advocate for human rights. I don’t see why someone who’s a feminist should be thought of differently. Suzanne Vega
Lizzie Magie was a pretty astonishing woman. She was an outspoken feminist, she had acted, she had done some performing, she had written some poetry, and she was a game designer. Mary Pilon
There can be people who are feminist, and people who hold the completely opposite view but are still feminists. It seems to me from the outside that there’s a lot of people busy fighting each other rather than working toward their goals. It’s a shame. Neil Strauss
But the true feminist deals out of a lesbian consciousness whether or not she ever sleeps with women. Audre Lorde
Black women’s intersectional experiences of racism and sexism have been a central but forgotten dynamic in the unfolding of feminist and antiracist agendas. Kimberle Williams Crenshaw
I don’t think it’s not feminist to use every tool you have to succeed, and part of that is being a woman – presenting yourself in a certain way. Christina Hendricks
I just happen to be a woman and involved in sport, but that doesn’t necessarily make me a feminist. Katie Taylor
I’m proud to be a feminist because making sure that everyone understands we all have a role in fighting for equality is the only way to move forward. Justin Trudeau
I don’t think that French women are less feminist. If you look at Simone de Beauvoir, she was French and she wrote one of the founding texts of feminism. Stacy Martin
I think I was a feminist before being born. I had a feminist chromosome somewhere. Agnes Varda
If I feel something, it’s how I feel. I never say, ‘I feel this way, so you should feel that way.’ Not that there’s anything wrong with it, but I just am who I am. But, yeah. I think you would call me a feminist. Kim Kardashian
I think we all remember Emma Peel from ‘The Avengers,’ the feminist icon that she was in the late ’60s. Natalie Dormer
A friend of mine wrote a script, a feminist romantic comedy. She had a feminist scholar consult on it. My friend said, ‘Oh, my friend Gillian read it and really loved it.’ She goes, ‘Gillian Jacobs, you mean: Britta Perry, feminist icon?’ Gillian Jacobs
My politics are private, but many of my feminist politics cross over into my professional life. Frances McDormand
When people ask me do I believe in feminism – well, I didn’t even know I was a feminist. I was the top of the bill; I’ve always been the top of the bill. So I don’t know what equality is. Cilla Black
I will stand for equality, and that doesn’t mean giving me reservation. I would like to fight for it; just give me a fair chance. That’s what being a feminist is. Taapsee Pannu
I certainly am a feminist but, in my cinema, I don’t talk about any ‘isms’. I deal only with individuals; even if an ‘ism’ surfaces, it is not underlined. Aparna Sen
I definitely see myself as as much a feminist as I can try to be. I know I’m not perfect, but I definitely feel the connection with women. I feel them. Lil B
Postmodernism is an academic theory, originating in academia with an academic elite, not in the world of women and men, where feminist theory is rooted. Catharine MacKinnon
I consider myself a feminist because I believe women should have equal rights. Of course. It’s just that the term ‘feminism’ conjures up other things for people. Marina and the Diamonds
I think that any female who gets asked if she’s a feminist… it’s silly… it’s so interesting when people ask females if they’re a feminist. Of course every female wants to be equal! Melanie Martinez
Maybe I’ll be a feminist in my old age. Bjork
We do need women in civic life. We do need women to run for office, to be in political office. We need a feminist to be at the table when decisions are being made so that the right decisions will be made. Dolores Huerta
I don’t think that the feminist movement has done much for the characters of women. Doris Lessing
Either you are a feminist or you are a sexist/misogynist. There is no box marked ‘other.’ Ani DiFranco
I’m a feminist, but I think that romance has been taken away a bit for my generation. I think what people connect with in novels is this idea of an overpowering, encompassing love – and it being more important and special than anything and everything else. Emma Watson
I am more feminist than feminists. Christian Louboutin
The beauty of being a feminist is that you get to be whatever you want. And that’s the point. Shonda Rhimes
Both my parents were Democrats. My dad was definitely more of a fiscally conservative traditional Democrat. My mom was more of a feminist Camelot Democrat. They definitely had an idealistic view of life as it should be in the United States. And they had a sense that government had to have some hand in making people’s lives better. Lisa Kennedy Montgomery
I’ve always wanted to be independent and answer for myself. That probably is the part of me I would class to be feminist. I’d like to have children; marriage I have a bit of an issue with. Kelly Brook
Womanist is to feminist as purple is to lavender. Alice Walker
Women have been taught that, for us, the earth is flat, and that if we venture out, we will fall off the edge. Some of us have ventured out nevertheless, and so far we have not fallen off. It is my faith, my feminist faith, that we will not. Andrea Dworkin
This is a feminist bookstore. There is no humor section. John Callahan
I get asked a lot about being a woman within the industry and how difficult it is, and yeah, it is – but it’s difficult for everybody… I’m not a ‘burn-your-bra’ feminist. Jessie Buckley
To be a feminist, you could cut your hair really short. You have to be really angry about something. Tucker Carlson
Polanski is a great example of a person whose personal life clearly has been just fraught with scandal and transgression and criminal acts. And yet, in ‘Rosemary’s Baby,’ I think he’s made one of the crowning feminist statements in film. Karyn Kusama
A feminist is a person who believes in the power of women just as much as they believe in the power of anyone else. It’s equality, it’s fairness, and I think it’s a great thing to be a part of. Zendaya
The liberal feminist movement never imagined that women would take seriously the encouragement to become our own heroes and claim life for ourselves, on our terms, no matter who we are. Pro-choice and pro-life, Christian and not, poor and rich, black, white, gay and straight. It is a dream we all hold dear, and it’s called the Tea Party. Tammy Bruce
There’s this ridiculous idea that I’m a gender traitor because I’m not a feminist. I’m supposed to be part of a sisterhood: you’re automatically supposed to support all women just because you have the same genitals as them, which doesn’t make sense. Lauren Southern
I am a feminist, and what that means to me is much the same as the meaning of the fact that I am Black: it means that I must undertake to love myself and to respect myself as though my very life depends upon self-love and self-respect. June Jordan
Personally I’m not a feminist, as I can’t stand puritans. Vivienne Westwood
Women tend to be conservative in youth and get more radical as they get older because they lose power with age. So if a young woman is not a feminist, I say, ‘Just wait.’ Gloria Steinem