“As individual fingers we can easily be broken, but all together we make a mighty fist.”

God made me an Indian, but not a reservation Indian.

Each man is good in the sight of the Great Spirit. It is not necessary for eagles to be crows. Now we are poor but we are free. No white man controls our footsteps. If we must die, we die defending our rights.

If the Great Spirit had desired me to be a white man he would have made me so in the first place. He put in your heart certain wishes and plans, and in my heart he put other and different desires. It is not necessary for eagles to be crows.

A cold wind blew on the prairie on the day the last buffalo fell. A death wind for my people.

God made me an Indian.

I have killed, robbed, and injured too many white men to believe in a good peace. They are medicine, and I would eventually die a lingering death. I had rather die on the field of battle.

The white man knows how to make everything, but he does not know how to distribute it.

If a man loses anything and goes back and looks carefully for it, he will find it.

Behold, my friends, the spring is come; the earth has gladly received the embraces of the sun, and we shall soon see the results of their love!

I know Great Spirit is looking down upon me from above, and will hear what I say.

There are things they tell us that sound good to hear, but when they have accomplished their purpose they will go home and will not try to fulfill our agreements with them.

What white man can say I never stole his land or a penny of his money? Yet they say that I am a thief.

Each man is good in His sight. It is not necessary for eagles to be crows.

Inside of me there are two dogs. One is mean and evil and the other is good and they fight each other all the time. When asked which one wins I answer, the one I feed the most.

Go back home where you came from. This country is mine, and I intend to stay here and to raise this country full of grown people.

I was very sorry when I found out that your intentions were good and not what I supposed they were.

Those who are heartless, once cared too much.

You search, you break your heart, your back, your brain, and then-and only then-it is handed to you.

Don’t feel sad over someone who gave up on you, feel sorry for them because they gave up on someone who would have never given up on them.

I don’t know if I ever told you this before, but you’re the only one I ever waited for this long.

We have a good time together, even when we’re not together.

My dogs are there to teach me to take a break. They’re there to remind me that there’s more to life than work.

Understanding our history is one of many ways to break the cycle of racial injustice in this country. ⁣

We each need to find our own inspiration. Sometimes it is not easy.