I'm for truth, no matter who tells it. I'm for justice, no

"I’m for truth, no matter who tells it. I’m for justice, no matter who it’s for or against." These words of Malcolm X, warrior of conscience and voice of the oppressed, burn with the fire of uncompromising righteousness. In this saying, he calls us beyond the narrowness of tribe, beyond the blindness of favoritism, beyond the weakness of comfort. He proclaims that truth and justice are higher than any allegiance, greater than any flag, stronger than any chain of prejudice. To follow them requires courage, for they may rise against even those we love—or stand with those we once despised.

The ancients, too, held this wisdom. In the courts of kings, there were always those who bent words to please their masters. But the true sages, the prophets, and the philosophers knew that truth bows to no man. When the prophet Nathan stood before King David and spoke of his sin, he was not loyal to a man but to righteousness. When Socrates refused to flatter Athens and drank the hemlock rather than betray his search for truth, he showed the same fearless devotion Malcolm X demanded.

Malcolm himself lived this creed. Though once a fierce critic of those outside his own people, he journeyed to Mecca and beheld the fellowship of believers from every race. He returned transformed, declaring that his struggle was no longer for one people alone, but for all who thirsted for justice. It was not easy to turn against his old ways, nor to challenge his own followers with new truths, but he was unshaken. For he had pledged himself not to comfort, not to popularity, but to truth and justice—no matter who spoke it, no matter whom it served.

History offers us other witnesses. Consider Abraham Lincoln, who in the turmoil of civil war, declared that his aim was not to preserve slavery nor to destroy it, but to do right as God gave him to see the right. He was not for the North or the South alone; he was for justice. And though his decision to free the enslaved brought both triumph and enemies, his devotion to truth marked him as a man who stood above factions, guided by something eternal.

The lesson in Malcolm X’s words is both stern and liberating. He reminds us that loyalty to persons, to nations, or to parties must never blind us. If a foe speaks truth, we must honor it. If a friend commits injustice, we must oppose it. This is the path of integrity, though it is a lonely one, for many prefer the shelter of bias to the storm of honesty. Yet only in this storm do we find clarity, and only in such clarity can justice truly live.

Children of tomorrow, hear this teaching: make yourselves servants of truth, not masters of deception. Bind yourselves to justice, not to prejudice. Do not ask, “Who gains from this truth?” but only, “Is it truth?” Do not ask, “Who suffers from this justice?” but only, “Is it justice?” This is the way of the brave, the way of those whose names echo long after their voices fall silent.

In your own lives, practice this discipline. Speak truth at home, even when it costs you. Stand for justice in your work, even when it threatens comfort. Defend the weak, rebuke the strong, not out of hatred, but out of love for what is right. Let no friend’s smile or enemy’s scorn turn you from the path. For truth and justice are like the sun and the wind—they shine and blow upon all, without favor, without fear.

Thus remember the words of Malcolm X: be for truth, be for justice. If you live by this, your heart will be free, your voice will be strong, and your life will be joined to the great current of those who, across all ages, have dared to stand with what is eternal.