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Poverty Quotes

On hardship, pretense, and the thin line between struggle and ruin.

These quotes describe poverty as something felt rather than just discussed—its nearness to wealth in some places, the pretense people keep up to hide it, and the social programs built to hold it back. See our poverty slogans for another angle.

There's prejudice and poverty in Hungary as there is in every country.

Quotes by Tibor Fischer

By seeing the problem of poverty merely in terms of assistance, we overlook that our enormous economic advantage is deeply tainted by how it accumulated over the course of one historical process that has devastated the societies and cultures of...

Quotes by Thomas Pogge

It seems far-fetched, even preposterous, to blame the global economic order for the persistence of severe poverty in countries that are ruled by obvious thugs and crooks.

Quotes by Thomas Pogge

To say that any people are not fit for freedom, is to make poverty their choice, and to say they had rather be loaded with taxes than not.

Quotes by Thomas Paine

The poverty of a man of benevolence is not to be considered as poverty but only as his temporary inability to exercise his inherent duty.

Quotes by Thiruvalluvar

I grew up in Brooklyn, in what I now know was poverty. Sharing a tiny bedroom with my two brothers, eating government cheese and passing down sneakers until they were unpassable... I simply thought the whole world lived as such,...

Quotes by Theodore Melfi

As society advances the standard of poverty rises.

Quotes by Theodore Parker

I myself am from a very poor background; I experienced firsthand poverty in this country, and that is not unrelated to my desire, from the moment I became president, to make a priority of poverty reduction in this country.

Quotes by Thein Sein

Defeating malaria is absolutely critical to ending poverty, improving the health of millions, and enabling future generations to reach their full potential.

Quotes by Tedros Adhanom

Social Security is the only thing most Americans can count on to keep them out of poverty during retirement.

Quotes by Ted Deutch

This country is going to implode, or put another way, it's going to get crushed under the weight of poverty. You can't have one percent of the people who own and control more wealth than the other 90 percent of...

Quotes by Tavis Smiley

Progress to reduce hunger is being made by tackling both the cause and the consequences of extreme poverty and famine.

Quotes by Tae Yoo

The common base of all the Semitic creeds, winners or losers, was the ever present idea of world-worthlessness. Their profound reaction from matter led them to preach bareness, renunciation, poverty; and the atmosphere of this invention stifled the minds of...

Quotes by T. E. Lawrence

Empowering small farmers to increase productivity, improve crop quality and access reliable markets is critical to addressing global hunger and poverty.

Quotes by Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Technologies, including cell phones, have the potential to help millions of poor people out of poverty by enabling access to a range of safe, affordable financial services - most importantly, savings accounts - that have long been out of reach.

Quotes by Sylvia Mathews Burwell

Knowledge in Sanskrit will go a long way in finding solutions to the contemporary problems like global warming, unsustainable consumption, civilisational clash, poverty, terrorism, etc.

Quotes by Sushma Swaraj

When I think how art education is eliminated whenever we get a budget crunch in the schools, I have to stand up and say that even when there was dire poverty ten blocks away from Tiffany Studios in the Lower...

Quotes by Susan Vreeland

Entertainment can be a more powerful driver than poverty.

Quotes by Sugata Mitra

When a mother feels cold, she asks the child to wear a sweater. Our concept of poverty is that way. When we do a project and people receive our help, we may think that they are getting benefited, but is...

Quotes by Sudha Murty

Poverty is restriction and as such, it is the greatest injustice you can perpetrate upon yourself.

Quotes by Stuart Wilde

Frequently Asked Questions

What angles on poverty do these quotes cover?
This set covers a personal observation about inequality in Mexico, a stark description of poverty's harshness, a policy view connecting Social Security to reducing poverty, and an older reflection on pretense and a ruined man's pride.
Is there a quote describing wealth and poverty existing side by side?
Yes: "In Mexico, wealth and poverty live next to each other and are cordial with each other - in my experience."
Does a quote connect poverty to a dark, memorable image?
Yes: "There is something about poverty that smells like death."
Is there a quote linking Social Security to reducing poverty?
Yes - one sample post states, "Social Security not only helps Americans enjoy a secure retirement, it has also kept millions of Americans out of poverty." This is presented as that speaker's own stated policy view, not this page's endorsement of any particular policy position.
Where can I find more poverty-related content?
If you liked these, check out our Slogans page for more short lines on poverty, or our Life quotes for broader reflection.

The collection also touches on how poverty shapes children and education, alongside its role in a nation's broader story.