30 International Women’s Day Quotes to Inspire and Empower You

To celebrate International Women’s Day on 8th March, we’ve found some of the most inspiring and empowering International Women’s Day quotes from authors, activists and politicians as well as some of our favorite fictional characters. 

These powerful International Women’s Day quotes honor the strength and achievements of women worldwide. Save these for a time when you need some insight and encouragement, or simply share them with your friends this International Women’s Day.

30 International Women’s Day quotes 

Inspiring quotes 

“I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.” – Audre Lorde 

Audre Lorde was an American writer, professor, philosopher, intersectional feminist, poet and civil rights activist, and described herself as a “Black, lesbian, feminist, socialist, mother, warrior, poet”.

“We realize the importance of our voice when we are silenced.” – Malala Yousafzai 

Malala Yousafzai is a Pakistani female education activist. In October 2012 and at the age of 15 she was shot in the head by a man on her way home from school, a targeted attack as a result of her speaking out publicly against the Taliban’s ban of girls going to school. She was awarded the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate at the age of 17, making her the youngest Nobel Prize laureate in history, and she continues to fight for education and equality.

“Women belong in all places where decisions are being made. It shouldn’t be that women are the exception.” – Ruth Bader Ginsburg 

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1993 until her death in 2020. She became the second woman, and first Jewish woman, to serve on the Supreme Court, fiercely advocating for gender equality and women’s rights throughout her tenure.

“Human rights are women’s rights, and women’s rights are human rights.” – Hillary Clinton 

Hillary Clinton was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013 and the first lady of the United States as the wife of Bill Clinton from 1993 to 2001. In 2016 she became the first woman to win a presidential nomination by a major U.S. political party and the only woman to win the popular vote for U.S. president.

“Don’t think about making women fit the world—think about making the world fit women.” – Gloria Steinem 

Gloria Steinem is a self-proclaimed radical feminist, writer, lecturer and political activist who became nationally recognized as a leader and a spokeswoman for the feminist movement in the late 1960s and early 1970s. She became a prominent figure in the Women’s Liberation Movement addressing issues from workplace equality to sexual and reproductive rights. She is also famously known for saying that a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle.

“Feminism is for everybody.” – bell hooks 

Gloria Jean Watkins, commonly known by her pen name bell hooks (stylized in all lower case), was an American author, theorist, educator, and social critic who was also a Distinguished Professor in Residence at Berea College. She published over 30 books and articles, which tackled issues of race, feminism, and class.

“Women, they have minds, and they have souls, as well as just hearts. And they’ve got ambition, and they’ve got talent, as well as just beauty. I’m so sick of people saying that love is all a woman is fit for.” – Louisa May Alcott, Little Women (said by character Jo March) 

Louisa May Alcott was in 1832 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Though she’s best known for her novel Little Women, she was also a nurse, women’s suffragist and abolitionist who devoted much of her time to advocate for women’s right to vote, which comes through even in her fictional work.

“Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another stepping stone to greatness.” – Oprah Winfrey 

Famous for The Oprah Winfrey Show, an American talk show that ran from 1986 to 2011, Oprah Winfrey has used her platform to make countless public statements about women’s issues, including violence against women, lesbianism, women’s independence from men, and her popular ‘Book Club’ episodes to promote Black feminist fiction.

“I’ve never been interested in being invisible and erased.” – Laverne Cox 

Laverne Cox is an American actress and LGBTQ advocate, who rose to fame in her breakout role on the Netflix series Orange Is the New Black. She was the first transgender person to be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in an acting category, and was also the first transgender person to appear on the cover of Time magazine and Cosmopolitan magazine, and the first openly transgender person to have a wax figure of herself at Madame Tussauds. 

Encouraging quotes 

“The best color in the whole world is the one that looks good on you.”- Coco Chanel 

Coco Chanel (real name Gabrielle Chanel) is, of course, most famous as a fashion legend. She was a successful businesswoman who felt strongly about her (and other women’s) economic freedom. Her fashion liberated women as she took inspiration from menswear, and her designs allowed women to live and breathe in their own clothes.

“Women are like teabags. We don’t know our true strength until we are in hot water.” – Eleanor Roosevelt 

Eleanor Roosevelt the longest-serving First Lady of the United States during her husband Franklin D. Roosevelt’s four terms as president from 1933 to 1945. She was widely loved and redefined the role of First Lady, committing herself to human and civil rights, supporting the social feminists of the League of Women Voters and the labor feminism of the Women’s Trade Union League.

“It is never too late to be what you might have been.” – George Eliot 

George Eliot was the pen name of Mary Ann Evans, and English novelist, poet, journalist, translator, and one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. She wrote seven novels: Adam Bede, The Mill on the Floss, Silas Marner, Romola, Felix Holt, the Radical, Middlemarch and Daniel Deronda.

“Feminism isn’t about making women strong. Women are already strong. It’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength.” – G.D. Anderson 

G.D Anderson is the pseudonym for Geena Dunne, an Australian feminist writer and founder of Australian charity, The Cova Project. In 2015 she spent some time working in rural Namibia and experienced the plight of Namibia’s women, leading to her launching The Cova Project with her sister Caillie in 2018, with the mission to solve the problem of access to menstrual items. To date, The Cova Project has provided over 20,000 African women with access to a free menstrual cup.

Famous quotes 

“Every woman’s success should be an inspiration to another. We’re strongest when we cheer each other on.” – Serena Williams 

One of the most famous tennis players of all time, Serena Williams was ranked as the world No. 1 in women’s singles by the Women’s Tennis Association for 319 weeks – the third-most of all time. She has always demanded respect and stood up for women in tennis when faced with sexism in sport.

“No country can ever truly flourish if it stifles the potential of its women and deprives itself of the contributions of half its citizens.” – Michelle Obama 

Michelle Obama was the First Lady of the United States, married to Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United States. She is also an attorney and author, graduating from Harvard Law School. Praised for being unapologetically herself in the public eye, she often called for men to “do better” when questioned about how women could progress the feminist cause.

“Do not live someone else’s life and someone else’s idea of what womanhood is. Womanhood is you.” – Viola Davis 

A Hollywood icon, Viola Davis is an American actress and film producer with countless accolades including both the Triple Crown of Acting and EGOT (the term used for an individual who has won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award). She is an outspoken feminist, sharing her story to speak out for women who are survivors of sexual assault. 

“Feminism is not a stick with which to beat other women. It’s about freedom, it’s about liberation, it’s about equality.” – Emma Watson

Emma Watson was catapulted to fame when she took on the role of Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter movie series at the age of 10. She has been a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador since 2014, helping launch the UN Women HeForShe campaign to encourage more men to support gender equality.

“Feminism is not just about women; it’s about letting all people lead fuller lives. We cannot always control our thoughts, but we can control our words, and repetition impresses the subconscious, and we are then master of the situation.” – Jane Fonda 

Jane Fonda is universally recognized film icon, her work spanning over six decades of film and television. She is also a prominent women’s rights campaigner, co-founding the Hollywood Women’s Political Committee in 1984.

“There’s nothing a man can do, that I can’t do better and in heels.” – Ginger Rogers 

Ginger Rogers is best known for her partnership with Fred Astaire, though she often carried films on her own too. She was an actress, dancer and singer during the 1930s, the Golden Age of Hollywood, winning an Academy Award for Best Actress for her starring role in Kitty Foyle. Rogers was a pioneer in showing how diverse a woman’s dancing could be on film.

“I didn’t get anywhere in my life waiting on somebody’s permission.” Uzo Aduba in Mrs. America (said by character Shirley Chisholm)

Mrs. America is a miniseries following the unsuccessful political movement to pass the Equal Rights Amendment and the efforts of conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly in the 1970s to oppose it. This line is said by the character adaptation of Shirley Chisholm, who became the first black woman to be elected to the United States Congress in 1968.

“They’ll tell you you’re too loud, that you need to wait your turn and ask the right people for permission. Do it anyway.” Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (known as AOC) is an American politician and activist serving since 2019 as the U.S. representative for New York’s 14th congressional district, relentlessly campaigning for women’s rights and personally refusing to be silenced in the face of sexism.

“Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.” – Judy Garland 

Judy Garland was an American actress and singer, best known for her role of Dorothy in the 1939 movie The Wizard of Oz. In her adult life she also hosted her own Emmy-nominated television series, The Judy Garland Show. Garland was a vocal supported of civil rights, gay rights, , using her voice to amplify and raise money for these issues.

“I am grateful to be a woman. I must have done something great in another life.” – Maya Angelou 

Maya Angelou (born Marguerite Annie Johnson) was an acclaimed American poet, storyteller, writer, director, activist and autobiographer – her most famous work, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, tells the story of her life up to the age of 17. As a civil rights activist, Angelou worked for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, and in 2013 she was the recipient of the Literarian Award, an honorary National Book Award for contributions to the literary community.

“Do not allow your talents to lie dormant, ladies. Design your own future. When you go home today, ask yourself what YOU will change. And then get started.” – Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (by character Elizabeth Zott)

Author Bonnie Garmus found fame with her debut novel Lessons in Chemistry, a story set in 1960s America inspired by her first-hand experience of modern day sexism. The novel’s main character, Elizabeth, is a chemist who is forced out of her job at a research laboratory after her colleagues learn she is pregnant. She becomes a TV cooking show host and manages to smuggle scientific knowledge and feminist ideas to her female audience.

“I hate to hear you talk about all women as if they were fine ladies instead of rational creatures.” – Jane Austen, Persuasion 

Jane Austen was an English novelist who wrote six particularly famous novels that are still commonly read today: Sense and Sensibility (1811), Pride and Prejudice (1813), Mansfield Park (1814), Emma (1816), Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. Her work often explored – and questioned – the dependence of women on marriage for favorable social standing and economic security. 

“I have learned you are never too small to make a difference.” – Greta Thunberg 

Greta Thunberg is a Swedish environmental activist, who entered the public eye in 2018 at the age of 15 when she called for stronger government action on climate change by skipping school and protesting outside the Swedish parliament. She united other young people, and sparked a movement of school strikes for climate movement. She’s become a global face and leader of climate activism, and was named the youngest Time Person of the Year in 2019.

“I just love bossy women. I could be around them all day. To me, bossy is not a pejorative term at all. It means somebody’s passionate and engaged and ambitious and doesn’t mind leading.” – Amy Poehler 

From Mean Girls to Parks and Recreation, actress and comedian Amy Poehler has been on our screens since the early 2000s. She has been active in writing and including female and feminist stories in her films.

“An idea built the wall of separation between the sexes, and an idea will crumble it to dust.” – Sarah Moore Grimké  

Generally accepted as the mother of the women’s suffrage movement, Sarah Moore Grimké was an American abolitionist in the 19th century. She attempted to enlighten her contemporaries that the current laws gave a husband complete control of his wife’s property, likening women more to slaves than wives.

“Where there is a woman there is magic.” – Ntozake Shange

American playwright and poet, Ntozake Shange was a self proclaimed feminist whose work focused on Black women and Black power. She is best known for her 1975 Obie Award–winning play (which was also her first play), for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf.

What should I say on International Women’s Day? 

If you don’t know what to say when it comes to International Women’s Day, you can share any of these quotes that resonate with you with your friends and family – alternatively, you can share a story of an inspirational woman that you know or tell the women in your life how they have inspired or supported you. If you’re really stuck, just stick with ‘Happy International Women’s Day’!