Langston Hughes

Notable Quotes

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To my mind, it is the duty of the younger Negro artist, if he accepts any duties at all from outsiders, to change through the force of his art that old whispering 'I want to be white,' hidden in the aspirations of his people, to 'Why should I want to be white? I am a Negro - and beautiful!'

From Langston Hughes

I will not take 'but' for an answer.

From Langston Hughes

Hold fast to dreams For when dreams go Life is a barren field Frozen with snow.

From Langston Hughes

One of the great needs of Negro children is to have books about themselves and their lives that can help them be proud.

From Langston Hughes

In all my life, I have never been free. I have never been able to do anything with freedom, except in the field of my writing.

From Langston Hughes

I was a victim of a stereotype. There were only two of us Negro kids in the whole class, and our English teacher was always stressing the importance of rhythm in poetry. Well, everybody knows - except us - that all Negroes have rhythms, so they elected me class poet.

From Langston Hughes