If there is no struggle, there is no progress. — Frederick Douglass · Smartyfair

If there is no struggle, there is no progress.

Frederick Douglass1818–1895 · activist · 1800s USAFrederick Douglass escaped slavery as a young man and became one of the most powerful writers and speakers in American history.5 quotes

Source foundPerseverance1800s

In plain words

Nothing gets better without a hard part.

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Made from these words

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Where these words come from

How sure this is: 93% sureThese words were traced back to where they first appeared. That source is listed below.
What turned up: "West India Emancipation" speech, Canandaigua NY, 3 August 1857
Occasion: 1857
Sources checked: blackpast.orgChecked using claude-sonnet-5, 20 August 2026
en.wikiquote.orgChecked using claude-sonnet-5, 20 August 2026

More from Frederick Douglass

I would unite with anybody to do right; and with nobody to do wrong.

Frederick Douglass I set out with high hope, and a fixed purpose, at whatever cost of trouble, to learn how to read.

Frederick Douglass If they have travelled far, they have made the road on which they travelled. If they have ascended high, they have built their own ladder.

Frederick Douglass It is not luck, nor is it great mental endowments, but it is well directed, honest toil.

Frederick Douglass

More on perseverance

It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.

Confucius Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.

Lao Tzu Slow and steady wins the race.

Aesop Patience is the key to relief.Arabic proverb Drops of water hollow out a stone.

Ovid Few things are impossible to diligence and skill.