The animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans any more than black people were made for white, or women created for men.

When people become elders - when they're older; they can be old without being an elder, really. They [can] just be old and not very useful.

Be nobody's darling; Be an outcast. Take the contradictions Of your life And wrap around You like a shawl, To parry stones To keep you warm.

Artists are messengers whose responsibility is to unite the world -- a faith that will lead not to destruction but to transformation.

But I don't know how to fight. All I know how to do is stay alive.

I continue to care for President Obama and for his family. I think that in many ways they are very courageous people, and I honor that, because I know what it means to live as a black person in a racist America.

Ignorance, arrogance, and racism have bloomed as Superior Knowledge in all too many universities.