Melina Mercouri

You must understand what the Parthenon Marbles mean to us. They are our pride. They are our sacrifices. They are our noblest symbol of excellence. They are a tribute to the democratic philosophy. They are our aspirations and our name. They are the essence of Greekness.

Melina Mercouri (31 October 1920 – 6 March 1994) was a Greek actress, singer, activist, and politician. She received an Academy Award for Best Actress nomination, won a French Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actress for her performance in the film Never on Sunday (1960) and an Italian David di Donatello for Topkapi. As a politician, she championed the return of the Parthenon Marbles to Greece.

Quotes

• I was born a Greek, I will die a Greek; Pattakos was born Fascist, he will die Fascist.
  • Helen Vlachos (1971). Free Greek voices: a political anthology. (10 Gayfere St., SWIP 3HN), Doric Publications Ltd.. ISBN 9780902999008. 

• You must understand what the Parthenon Marbles mean to us. They are our pride. They are our sacrifices. They are our noblest symbol of excellence. They are a tribute to the democratic philosophy. They are our aspirations and our name. They are the essence of Greekness.
  • Ian Windale (9 February 1997). The Parthenon Marbles, Melina's Speech to the Oxford Union.

• One of the most courageous and committed politicians I have ever met.
  • Melina Merkouri describing Andreas Papandreou.
  • Gage, Nicholas (March 21, 1982). "The paradoxical Papandreou". The New York Times Magazine. 

External links

• Encyclopedic article on Melina Mercouri on Wikipedia
• Media related to Melina Mercouri on Wikimedia Commons