"It is not possible to be an American and not be a racist. You have to work at it."

"I was not a Negro. I was a Black man. And my country is not a country. It is a state of mind."

"The paradox of education is precisely this—that as one begins to become conscious one begins to examine the society in which he is being educated."

"Ignorance, allied with power, is the most ferocious enemy justice can have."

"The challenge is to make the world safe for diversity, not for sameness."