“Look for me in the whirlwind or the storm, look for me all around you, for, with God’s grace, I shall come and bring with me countless millions of black slaves who have died in America.”

We must give up the silly idea of folding our hands and waiting on God to do everything for us. If God had intended for that, then he would not have given us a mind. Whatever you want in life, you must make up your mind to do it for yourself.

If the Negro is not careful he will drink in all the poison of modern civilization and die from the effects of it.

Intelligence rules the world, ignorance carries the burden.

Look for me in the whirlwind or the storm.

The whole world is run on bluff. No race, no nation, no man has any divine right to take advantage of others. Why allow the other fellow to bluff you?

Take advantage of every opportunity; where there is none, make it for yourself, and let history record that as we toiled laboriously and courageously, we worked to live gloriously.

At no time within the last five hundred years can one point to a single instance of the Negro as a race of haters.

You must not mistake lip service and noise for bravery and service.

If you have no confidence in self, you are twice defeated in the race of life.

The history of a movement, the history of a nation, the history of a race is the guide-post of that movement’s destiny, that nation’s destiny, that race’s destiny.

I have no desire to take all black people back to Africa; there are blacks who are no good here and will likewise be no good there.

A man’s bread and butter is only insured when he works for it.

If we as a people realized the greatness from which we came we would be less likely to disrespect ourselves.

A reading man and woman is a ready man and woman, but a writing man and woman are exact.

When all else fails to organize the people, conditions will.

What you do today that is worthwhile, inspires others to act at some future time.

I talked and talked of everything I know about the white man’s inhuman treatment of the Negro.

Black people’s music is in a class by itself and always has been.

Everybody shall be accepted no matter what they stand for, you are not always going to agree on their faith.

I am dedicated to end the disenfranchisement of Black America, that has been present for too long.

Night is coming on and I am filled with indescribable loneliness. Felt feverish; bathed in a black, silent stream.

Hence I have no mercy or compassion in me for a society that will crush people, and then penalize them for not being able to stand up under the weight.

We have to consciously study how to be tender with each other until it becomes a habit because what was native has been stolen from us, the love of Black women for each other.

I don’t care if you’re black, white, straight, bisexual, gay, lesbian, short, tall, fat, skinny, rich or poor. If you’re nice to me, I’ll be nice to you. Simple as that.