66 Quotes by Stokely Carmichael

Our grandfathers had to run, run, run. My generation’s out of breath. We ain’t running no more.

Unfortunately in this essay we can not discuss the history and development of Pan-Africanism. That task was undertaken by Mr. Vincent Bakpetu Thompson in his excellent book Africa and Unity: The Evolution of Pan-Africanism.

Reorientation means an emphasis on the dignity of man, not on the sanctity of property. It means the creation of a society where human misery and poverty are repugnant to that society, not an indication of laziness or lack of initiative. The creation of new values means the establishment of a society based on free people, not free enterprise.

If a white man wants to lynch me, that’s his problem. If he’s got the power to lynch me, that’s my problem. Racism is not a question of attitude; it’s a question of power. Racism gets its power from capitalism. Thus, if you’re anti-racist, whether you know it or not, you must be anti-capitalist. The power for racism, the power for sexism, comes from capitalism, not an attitude.

I knew that I could vote and that that wasn’t a privilege; it was my right. Every time I tried I was shot, killed or jailed, beaten or economically deprived.

In struggle one not only fights against something – injustice, oppression – but one must struggle for something equally real but positive. That’s the other part of the equation.

I’m convinced that the deck is so stacked that only a certain number can get through. I happened to be one of that certain number. That’s all.

Black power can be clearly defined for those who do not attach the fears of white America to their questions about it.

I also know that while I am black I am a human being, and therefore I have the right to go into any public place. White people didn't know that. Every time I tried to go into a place they stopped me.