James Baldwin — "The American ideal, after all, is to be as much like an American as possible."

"The price one pays for pursuing any profession or calling is an intimate knowledge of its ugly side."

"It is not a question of whether we will be free, but how we will use our freedom."

"It is a great shock to discover that the world, which one always thought of as an adult world, is not adult at all; it is a world of children, all of whom are playing very complicated games, which the…"

"I love America more than any other country in the world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually."

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