We thought I was going to be a great athlete, and we were wrong, and I thought I was going to be a great entertainer, and that wasn't it either. I'm going to be an American Citizen. First class.

Black folks tell their kids they have to be twice as good as a white person? Well, if I tell a child of mine that, or that they have to be careful - that this is what a cop would do if you do this - they think something is wrong with them. I tell them death is better.

[A politician is] a person skilled in the art of compromise. Usually an elected official who has compromised to get nominated, compromised to get elected, and compromised repeatedly to stay in office.

I never believed in Santa Claus because I knew no white dude would come into my neighborhood after dark.

In most places in the country, voting is looked upon as a right and a duty, but in Chicago it's a sport.

Laughter is the best way to release tensions and fears.

People with high blood pressure, diabetes - those are conditions brought about by life style. If you change the life style, those conditions will leave.