"I am a Negro — and I am proud of it."

"It is the curse of the black race to be forever looking backward, forever remembering."

"Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never landing until the Watcher turns his eyes…"

"I have been in Sorrow's kitchen and licked out all the pots. Then I have stood on the peaky mountain wrapped in rainbows, with a harp and a sword in my hands."

"I am not tragically colored. There is no great sorrow dammed up in my soul, nor lurking behind my eyes."