All social inequalities which have ceased to be considered expedient, assume the character not of simple inexpediency, but of injustice, and appear so tyrannical, that people are apt to wonder how they ever could have. been tolerated; forgetful that they themselves perhaps tolerate other inequalities under an equally mistaken notion of expediency, the correction of which would make that which they approve seem quite as monstrous as what they have at last learnt to condemn. John Stuart Mill
About This Quote

This quote is a reminder to think about the social inequalities we tolerate because they seem convenient or because we don’t notice them. Sometimes, not noticing that an inequality exists is a sign that we should be more aware of it and do something to correct it. The idea of social equality is one that is important in our society, but it is often overlooked when we aren’t thinking about it enough. We should all know what social inequality is and why we should work towards eliminating it in our society.

Source: Utilitarianism

Some Similar Quotes
  1. Men build too many walls and not enough bridges. - Joseph Fort Newton

  2. Being vegan is easy. Are there social pressures that encourage you to continue to eat, wear, and use animal products? Of course there are. But in a patriarchal, racist, homophobic, and ableist society, there are social pressures to participate and engage in sexism, racism, homophobia,... - Gary L. Francione

  3. Ethical veganism results in a profound revolution within the individual; a complete rejection of the paradigm of oppression and violence that she has been taught from childhood to accept as the natural order. It changes her life and the lives of those with whom she... - Gary L. Francione

  4. I have a dream that one day little black boys and girls will be holding hands with little white boys and girls. - Unknown

  5. Achievement has no color - Abraham Lincoln

More Quotes By John Stuart Mill
  1. War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things: the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth a war, is much worse. When a people are used as mere human instruments for firing cannon or...

  2. It is indisputable that the being whose capacities of enjoyment are low, has the greatest chance of having them fully satisfied; and a highly endowed being will always feel that any happiness which he can look for, as the world is constituted, is imperfect. But...

  3. If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind.

  4. In this age, the mere example of non-conformity, the mere refusal to bend the knee to custom, is itself a service. Precisely because the tyranny of opinion is such as to make eccentricity a reproach, it is desirable, in order to break through that tyranny,...

  5. The creed which accepts as the foundation of morals, Utility, or the Greatest-Happiness Principle, holds that actions are right in proportion as they tend to promote happiness, wrong as they tend to produce the reverse of happiness. By happiness is intended pleasure, and the absence...

Related Topics