The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice is a quote most commonly attributed to which figure?

• A. Martin Luther King Jr.
• B. Theodore Parker
• C. Abraham Lincoln
• D. Nelson Mandela

Answer: (A)

That line expresses the idea that justice progresses over time, even if the road is long. It’s most commonly linked to Martin Luther King Jr. because his speeches during the civil rights era gave the phrase wide public resonance and tied it to the struggle for racial equality. The wording has older roots— Theodore Parker spoke of a similar notion—but King’s use and the cultural memory around his work have made him the figure people most often associate with the line today. The other figures are important in history and justice, but they didn’t popularize this exact phrasing in the same lasting way.