Get ready for America's birthday with these 4th of July quotes that will have you feeling red, white and blue
57 Patriotic 4th of July Quotes that Embody the American Spirit
Updated on Jun. 30, 2025
Patriotic 4th of July quotes
1. “I believe patriotism comes from the heart. Patriotism is voluntary. It is a feeling of loyalty and allegiance that is the result of knowledge and belief. A patriot shows their patriotism through their actions, by their choice.” —Jesse Ventura
2. “We identify the flag with almost everything we hold dear on earth. It represents our peace and security, our civil and political liberty, our freedom of religious worship, our family, our friends, our home. … But when we look at our flag and behold it, emblazoned with all our rights, we must remember that it is equally a symbol of our duties. Every glory that we associate with it is the result of duty done.” —Calvin Coolidge
3. “The red and white and starry blue is freedom’s shield and hope.” —John Philip Sousa
4. “It is the American flag. Just that and nothing more. No other adjective is ever prefixed to that word. It stands for the history of the United States and the traditions of our people … It is the flag just as much of the man who was naturalized yesterday as of the man whose people have been here generations.” —Henry Cabot Lodge
5. “I would like to be known as a person who is concerned about freedom and equality and justice and prosperity for all people.” —Rosa Parks
6. “The flag is the embodiment, not of sentiment, but of history. It represents the experiences made by men and women, the experiences of those who do and live under that flag.” —Woodrow Wilson
7. “What we need are critical lovers of America—patriots who express their faith in their country by working to improve it.” —Hubert Humphrey
8. “True patriotism springs from a belief in the dignity of the individual, freedom and equality not only for Americans but for all people on earth.” —Eleanor Roosevelt
9. “Here is your country. Cherish these natural wonders, cherish the natural resources, cherish the history and romance as a sacred heritage, for your children and your children’s children. Do not let selfish men or greedy interests skin your country of its beauty, its riches or its romance.” —Theodore Roosevelt
10. “This Nation was founded by men of many nations and backgrounds. It was founded on the principle that all men are created equal, and the rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.” —John F. Kennedy
11. “Remember, remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrants and revolutionists.” —Franklin D. Roosevelt
12. “Intellectually, I know that America is no better than any other country; emotionally, I know she is better than every other country.” —Sinclair Lewis
13. “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” —John F. Kennedy
14. “This will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave.” —Elmer Davis
Funny 4th of July quotes
15. “When you’re born, you get a ticket to the freak show. When you’re born in America, you get a front row seat.” —George Carlin
16. “The truth will set you free, but first it will piss you off.” —Gloria Steinem
17. “Liberty means responsibility. That is why most men dread it.” —George Bernard Shaw
18. “Laughter is America’s most important export.” —Walt Disney
19. “You wonder sometimes how our government puts on its pants in the morning.” —Jon Stewart
20. “If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” —George Orwell
21. “A real patriot is the fellow who gets a parking ticket and rejoices that the system works.” —William E. “Bill” Vaughan
Happy 4th of July quotes
22. “What was important wasn’t the fireworks, it was that we were together this evening, together in this place, looking up into the sky at the same time.” —Banana Yoshimoto
23. “It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward evermore.” —John Adams
24. “Then join hand in hand, brave Americans all! By uniting we stand, by dividing we fall.” —John Dickinson
25. “I believe in America because we have great dreams, and because we have the opportunity to make those dreams come true.” —Wendell L. Wilkie
26. “Dreams are the foundation of America.” —Lupita Nyong’o
Inspiring 4th of July quotes
27. “America is known as a country that welcomes people to its shores. All kinds of people.” —Ruth Bader Ginsburg
28. “This country will not be a good place for any of us to live in unless we make it a good place for all of us to live in.” —Theodore Roosevelt
29. “No government on earth can make men, who have realized freedom in their hearts, salute against their will.” —Mahatma Gandhi
30. “Freedom is the open window through which pours the sunlight of the human spirit and human dignity.” —Herbert Hoover
31. “It is not enough merely to call for freedom, democracy and human rights. There has to be a united determination to persevere in the struggle, to make sacrifices in the name of enduring truths, to resist the corrupting influences of desire, ill will, ignorance and fear.” —Aung San Suu Kyi
32. “The most fatal thing a man can do is try to stand alone.” —Carson McCullers
33. “The vigor of government is essential to the security of liberty.” —Alexander Hamilton
34. “All great change in America begins at the dinner table.” —Ronald Reagan
35. “For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.” —Nelson Mandela
36. “Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labor in freedom.” —Albert Einstein
37. “There is no hierarchy of values by which one culture has the right to insist on all its own values and deny those of another.” —Margaret Mead
38. “My definition of a free society is a society where it is safe to be unpopular.” —Adlai Stevenson II
39. “In the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope.” —Barack Obama
40. “We will never have true civilization until we have learned to recognize the rights of others.” —Will Rogers
41. “The advancement and diffusion of knowledge … is the only guardian of true liberty.” —James Madison
42. “Because equal rights, fair play, justice, are all like the air: We all have it, or none of us has it. That is the truth of it.” —Maya Angelou
43. “Where you see wrong or inequality or injustice, speak out, because this is your country. This is your democracy. Make it. Protect it. Pass it on.” —Thurgood Marshall
44. “With freedom comes responsibility.” —Eleanor Roosevelt
45. “What is the essence of America? Finding and maintaining that perfect, delicate balance between freedom ‘to’ and freedom ‘from.’” —Marilyn vos Savant
46. “I think of a hero as someone who understands the degree of responsibility that comes with his freedom.” —Bob Dylan
47. “In the face of impossible odds, people who love this country can change it.” —Barack Obama
48. “The function of freedom is to free someone else.” —Toni Morrison
4th of July short quotes
49. “The United States is the only country with a known birthday.” —James G. Blaine
50. “America is a tune. It must be sung together.” —Gerald Stanley Lee
51. “Ours is the only country deliberately founded on a good idea.” —John Gunther
52. “Freedom lies in being bold.” —Robert Frost
53. “My favorite thing about the United States? Lots of Americans, one America.” —Terri Guillemets
54. “Liberty is the breath of life to nations.” —George Bernard Shaw
55. “There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured with what is right in America.” —Bill Clinton
56. “Freedom is the oxygen of the soul.” —Moshe Dayan
57. “America, for me, has been the pursuit and catching of happiness.” —Terri Guillemets
Now that you have been inspired by these 4th of July quotes, see if you can nail this 4th of July trivia.
Why trust us
At Reader’s Digest, we’ve been sharing our favorite quotes for over 100 years. The sayings and quips that appear in the magazine’s “Quotable Quotes” (formerly “Remarkable Remarks”) are curated from interviews and essays originally published in the magazine, reprints from trusted titles and other verified sources. For this piece on 4th of July quotes, writer Chloë Nannestad tapped her experience covering quotes, quirky facts, trivia and humor for Reader’s Digest. We’ve gone the extra step and had Ambrose Martose, a fact-checker with 20-plus years of experience researching for national publications including National Geographic Adventure and Popular Mechanics, verify that all quotes are attributed correctly and have credible sourcing. Read more about our team, our contributors and our editorial policies.
