"The night is beautiful, so the faces of my people. The stars are beautiful, so the eyes of my people. Beautiful, also, is the sun. Beautiful, also, are the souls of my people."

"I am so tired of waiting, aren’t you, for the world to become good and beautiful and kind?"

"I love the night, because it is dark and mysterious."

"Put it this way: I am a Negro, and I am an American. I am a poet, and I am a writer. I am a human being, and I am black. I am a man, and I am a woman. I am an old man, and I am a young man. I am a chi…"

"I write about black people because I am black."