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An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he might choose.

Langston Hughes

Summer was made to give you a taste of what hell is like. Winter was made for landladies to charge high rents and keep cold radiators and make a fortune off of poor tenants.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Fortune Hell Summer Taste Winter Yourself
O, let my land be a land where Liberty Is crowned with no false patriotic wreath, But opportunity is real, and life is free, Equality is in the air we breathe.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Breathe Equality Freedom Land Liberty Life Myself Patriot
Love is a naked shadow, On a gnarled and naked tree.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Love Naked Shadow Tree Yourself
Gather quickly Out of darkness All the songs you know And throw them at the sun Before they melt Like snow.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Darkness Quick Snow Song Sun
Words Like Freedom There are words like Freedom Sweet and wonderful to say. On my heartstrings freedom sings All day everyday. There are words like Liberty That almost make me cry. If you had known what I know You would know why.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Freedom Heart Myself Sing Wonderful Word
Let America be the dream the dreamers dreamed – Let it be that great strong land of love Where never kings connive nor tyrants scheme That any man be crushed by one above.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Dreams Greatness Kind Man Oneself Strong
Both of them were very good and kind – the one who went to church and the one who didn’t. And no doubt from them I learned to like both Christians and sinners equally well.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Doubt Equality Goodness Kindness Learning Myself Sin
Blues had the pulse beat of the people who keep on going.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Hard Time Inspirational Motivational People
Like a welcome summer rain, humor may suddenly cleanse and cool the earth, the air and you.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Earth Rain Summer Welcome Yourself
We Negro writers, just by being black, have been on the blacklist all our lives. Censorship for us begins at the color line.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Beginning Black Live Oppression Ourselves Poet Writing
But there are certain very practical things American Negro writers can do. And must do. There’s a song that says, “the time ain’t long.” That song is right. Something has got to change in America-and change soon. We must help that change to come.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Change Difference Help Practical Time Transformation Writing
I swear to the Lord, I still can’t see, why Democracy means, everybody but me.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Democracy God Government Myself See
Everybody should take each other as they are, white, black, Indians, Creole. Then there would be no prejudice, nations would get along.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Care Different Each Other Ethnicity Nation Togetherness Unity
We younger Negro artists who create now intend to express our individual dark-skinned selves without fear or shame. If white people are pleased we are glad. If they aren?t it doesn?t matter.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Artist Creation Darkness Expression Happiness People Skin White Young
Life for me ain’t been no crystal stair.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Hard Time Life Myself Struggle
My seeking has been to explain and illuminate the Negro condition in America and obliquely that of all human kind.
LANGSTON HUGHES

Condition Explanation Human Kind Seek

An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he might choose.

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An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he might choose.

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Popular Authors

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