Inspirational Quotations

Inspirational Quotes by Eugene V. Debs (American Labor Leader)

Eugene Victor Debs (1855–1926) was an American union leader, socialist, and five-time presidential candidate between 1900 and 1920. A founding member of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW,) he was known for his passionate advocacy for economic justice, civil liberties, and workers’ rights, leaving a legacy that continues to inspire labor activists and socialists.

Born in Terre Haute, Indiana, Debs began his career as a railroad worker and rose to prominence as a labor leader. He co-founded the American Railway Union (ARU,) which gained national attention during the Pullman Strike of 1894. He led the strike against wage cuts and high rents in the company-owned town of Pullman, Illinois, earning imprisonment for contempt of court but elevating his public profile. After his release, he became a prominent figure in the American Socialist movement.

Debs’s personal warmth, integrity, and powerful speaking style won him widespread support. He ran for president as the Socialist Party candidate in 1900, 1904, 1908, 1912, and 1920, advocating for labor reforms and the end of capitalist exploitation. In 1920, while serving a ten-year prison sentence for anti-war activism, he received nearly a million votes.

His works include Unionism and Socialism (1904,) The Facts of Life and Death (1921,) and Walls and Bars (1927,) a posthumous collection of writings.

More: Wikipedia • READ: Works by Eugene V. Debs

The workers are the saviors of society, the redeemers of the race.
—Eugene V. Debs
Topics: Work

The American people can have anything they want; the trouble is they don’t know what they want.
—Eugene V. Debs
Topics: Goals, Aspirations

Intelligent discontent is the mainspring of civilization.
—Eugene V. Debs
Topics: Contentment

Years ago I recognized my kinship with all living things, and I made up my mind that I was not one bit better than the meanest on the earth. I said then and I say now, that while there is a lower class, I am in it; while there is a criminal element, I am of it; while there is a soul in prison, I am not free.
—Eugene V. Debs
Topics: Equality, Protest

I am not a labor leader. I don’t want you to follow me or anyone else. If you are looking for a Moses to lead you out of the capitalist wilderness you will stay right where you are. I would not lead you into this promised land if I could, because if I could lead you in, someone else could lead you out.
—Eugene V. Debs
Topics: Leadership

When great changes occur in history, when great principles are involved, as a rule the majority are wrong.
—Eugene V. Debs
Topics: Democracy

Anybody can be nobody, but it takes a man to be somebody.
—Eugene V. Debs
Topics: Greatness

The most heroic word in all languages is revolution.
—Eugene V. Debs
Topics: Revolution

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