The Panther and the Lash Quotes

“Justice

That Justice is a blind goddess
Is a thing to which we black are wise:
Her bandage hides two festering sores
That once perhaps were eyes.”
― Langston Hughes, The Panther and the Lash

“Words Like Freedom

There are words like Freedom
Sweet and wonderful to say.
On my heartstrings freedom sings
All day everyday.

There are words like Liberty
That almost make me cry.
If you had known what I know
You would know why.”
― Langston Hughes, The Panther and the Lash

“Frosting

Freedom
Is just frosting
On somebody else's
Cake--
And so must be
Till we
Learn how to
Bake.”
― Langston Hughes, The Panther and the Lash

“Down Where I Am

Too many years
Beatin' at the door--
I done beat my
Both fists sore.

Too many years
Tryin' to get up there--
Done broke my ankles down,
Got nowhere.

Too many years
Climbin' that hill,
'Bout out of breath.
I got my fill.

I'm gonna plant my feet
On solid ground.
If you want to see me,
Come down.”
― Langston Hughes, The Panther and the Lash

“American Heartbreak

I am the American heartbreak--
The rock on which Freedom
Stumped its toe--
The great mistake
That Jamestown made
Long ago.”
― Langston Hughes, The Panther and the Lash

“Oppression

Now dreams
Are not available
To the dreamers,
Nor songs
To the singers.

In some lands
Dark night
And cold steel
Prevail--
But the dream
Will come back,
And the song
Break
Its jail.”
― Langston Hughes, The Panther and the Lash

“Militant

Let all who will
Eat quietly the bread of shame.
I cannot,
Without complaining loud and long,
Tasting its bitterness in my throat
And feeling to my very soul
It's wrong.
For honest work
You proffer me poor pay,
For honest dreams
Your spit is in my face,
And so my fist is clenched
Today--
To strike your face.”
― Langston Hughes, The Panther and the Lash

“Question and Answer

Durban, Birmingham,
Cape Town, Alabama,
Johannesburg, Watts,
The earth around
Struggling, fighting,
Dying--for what?

A world to gain.

Groping, hoping,
Waiting--for what?

A world to gain.

Dreams kicked asunder,
Why not go under?

There's a world to gain.

But suppose I don't want it,
Why take it?

To remake it.”
― Langston Hughes, The Panther and the Lash