An Artist Must Be Free To Choose

Humor Is Laughing At What You Haven't Got When You Ought To Have It ... What You Wish In Your Secret Heart Were Not Funny, But It Is, And You Must Laugh. Humor Is Your Own Unconscious Therapy. Like A Welcome Summer Rain, Humor May Suddenly Cleanse And Cool The Earth, The Air, And You.

For My Best Poems Were All Written When I Felt The Worst. When I Was Happy, I Didn't Write Anything.

They [the Police] Learned Something From Them Harlem Riots. They Used To Beat Your Head Right In Public, But Now They Only Beat It After They Get You Down To The Station House.

Sometimes I Wish The Public Were Equally Aware Of The Men Of Our Race In The Cultural Fields. You, For Instance, Have You Ever Bought A Book By A Negro Writer?

Folks, I'm Telling You, Birthing Is Hard And Dying Is Mean- So Get Yourself A Little Loving In Between.