The Week in Quotes (Jan. 21 – 27)

Here are some of the week’s most notable quotes.

Anna Galland, the executive director of the progressive group moveon.org, on the anniversary of women’s marches around the world.

“This is a birthday party for a movement that has only begun to flex its power to change this democracy.”

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Satyapal Singh, India’s minister for higher education, on the lack of eyewitness accounts of human evolution.

“Since man is seen on Earth, he has always been a man. Nobody, including our ancestors, in written or oral, said they ever saw an ape turning into a human being.”

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Beverly Tillery, executive director of the Anti-Violence Project.

“Trump won the election by saying it was time to take back America for people feeling pushed out by LGBTQ people, immigrants and people of color. It was a tactical move to attack those communities. It worked, and there are more instances of violence because the climate in the country has changed. It has given an opening for people to feel like they can commit acts of hate-based violence without much repercussion.”

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Don Byrd, from the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, on why school vouchers are not a friend of true religious liberty.

“True religious liberty requires soul freedom, an act of conscience that would be weakened by a nudge from government. Government should stay out of the business of meddling in religion, either to try to help or to hinder. Religious education should have to survive on its own, and not with the aid of government funds.”

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Cecile Richards, outgoing president of Planned Parenthood and daughter of former Texas Gov. Ann Richards, on her next move: devoting herself to midterm elections and advising the record number of women candidates.

“As a lifetime organizer, I’ve never been more excited, despite this Congress and this presidency. There’s this kind of organic activism by women.”