31 Empowering Quotes That Will Make You Proud To Be A Woman

inspiring feminist quotes

by Katie Rosseinsky |
Updated on

Happy International Women's Day! Here's 31 empowering quotes for all you lovely ladies

In need of a boost? From Michelle Obama to Meryl Streep, Maya Angelou to Tina Fey and Beyoncé to Sheryl Sandberg, take inspiration from these powerful feminist quotes from women of note and you'll be ready to take on anything. Read them, print them out and stick them on your wall, Instagram them or share them with the women in your life. Repeat after us: Who runs the world? Girls...

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Inspirational quotes IWD - stacked

Eleanor Roosevelt1 of 31
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Eleanor Roosevelt

'A woman is like a tea bag - you never know how strong she is until she gets in hot water.'

Maya Angelou2 of 31
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Maya Angelou

'I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life's a bitch. You've got to go out and kick ass.'

Amy Poehler3 of 31
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Amy Poehler

'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 learning.'

Melinda Gates4 of 31
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Melinda Gates

'A woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman. But the search to find that voice can be remarkably difficult.'

Beyoncu00e95 of 31
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Beyoncé

'We need to reshape our own perception of how we view ourselves. We have to step up as women and take the lead.'

audrey hepburn6 of 31
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Audrey Hepburn

'Nothing is impossible. The word itself says, "I'm possible!"'

emma watson7 of 31
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Emma Watson

'I feel like young girls are told that they have to be a princess and fragile. It's bullsh*t. I identify much more with being a warrior –a fighter.'

lady gaga8 of 31
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Lady Gaga

'A feminist to me is somebody that wishes to protect the integrity of women who are ambitious. A feminist in my opinion is somebody that regards that women have a strong intelligence and wisdom. That we are just as great as men — and some of us can be even better.'

sarah silverman9 of 31
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Sarah Silverman

'We need to stop telling girls they can be anything they want when they grow up. Because it would have never occurred to them that they couldn't.'

oprah winfrey10 of 31
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Oprah Winfrey

'Think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another stepping stone to greatness.'

hillary clinton11 of 31
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Hillary Clinton

'Human rights are women's rights, and women's rights are human rights. Let us not forget that among those rights are the right to speak freely – and the right to be heard.'

zendaya12 of 31
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Zendaya

'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.'

tina fey13 of 31
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Tina Fey

'Know what? B*tches get stuff done.'

angelina jolie14 of 31
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Angelina Jolie

'Figure out who you are separate from your family, and the man or woman you're in a relationship with. Find who you are in this world and what you need to feel good alone. I think that's the most important thing in life. Find a sense of self. With that, you can do anything else.'

sheryl sandberg15 of 31
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Sheryl Sandberg

'I'm a feminist because I believe in women […] It's a heavy word, feminism, but it's not one I think we should run from. I'm proud to be a feminist.'

diana vreeland16 of 31
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Diana Vreeland

'You don't have to be pretty. You don't owe prettiness to anyone. Not to your boyfriend, not to your co-workers, especially not to random men on the street. You don't owe it to your mother, you don't owe it to you children, you don't owe it to civilization in general. Prettiness is not a rent you pay for occupying a space marked "female".'

michelle obama17 of 31
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Michelle Obama

'There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish, whether that's in politics or other fields.'

virginia woolf18 of 31
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Virginia Woolf

'As a woman I have no country. As a woman I want no country. As a woman my country is the whole world.'

taylor swift19 of 31
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Taylor Swift

'My hope for the future, not just in the music industry, but in every young girl I meet, is that they all realise their worth and ask for it.'

Zooey Deschanel20 of 31
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Zooey Deschanel

'I'm a feminist because I'm a woman, and I think that if you're a strong woman who wants to succeed, you have to be a feminist.'

coco chanel21 of 31
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Coco Chanel

'The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud.'

Charlotte Bronte22 of 31
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Charlotte Bronte

'If men could see us as we really are, they would be a little amazed.'

Gloria Steinem23 of 31
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Gloria Steinem

'A feminist is anyone who recognizes the equality and full humanity of women and men.'

Lupita Nyong'o24 of 31
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Lupita Nyong'o

'I hope that my presence on your screen and my face in magazines may lead you, young girls, on a beautiful journey. That you will feel the validation of your external beauty, but also get to the deeper business of being beautiful inside.'

Rebecca West25 of 31
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Rebecca West

'I myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is: I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments that differentiate me from a doormat.'

Meryl Streep26 of 31
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Meryl Streep

'Don't waste so much time thinking about how much you weigh. There is no more mind-numbing, boring, idiotic, self-destructive diversion from the fun of living.'

Reese Witherspoon27 of 31
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Reese Witherspoon

'Like Elle Woods, I do not like to be underestimated.'

Diana Ross28 of 31
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Diana Ross

'Instead of looking at the past, I put myself ahead twenty years and try to look at what I need to do now in order to get there then.'

Anne Hathaway29 of 31
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Anne Hathaway

'A man told me that for a woman, I was very opinionated. I said, "For a man, you're kind of ignorant."'

Nora Ephron30 of 31
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Nora Ephron

'Whatever you choose, however many roads you travel, I hope that you choose not to be a lady. I hope you will find some way to break the rules and make a little trouble out there. And I also hope that you will choose to make some of that trouble on behalf of women.'

Malala Yousafzai31 of 31
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Malala Yousafzai

'I raise up my voice – not so that I can shout, but so that those without a voice can be heard.'

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In other International Women's Day news, Emmerdale will air an special episodetonight [8th] dedicated to all the ladies.

The episode has been produced and directed by female crew members and will focus only on the female characters in the village.

Fans of the ITV soap will see Chas Dingle make a startling confession to Laurel Thomas, Rhona Goskirk struggle with her hysterectomy, Moira Barton confront a stranger at Butler's Farm and Charity Dingle receiving a mystery phone call.

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