“Language Is a Place of STRUGGLE” “Language Is a Place of STRUGGLE” Great Quotes by People of Color Edited by Tram Nguyen Beacon Press, Boston A complete list of quote sources for “Language Is a Place of Struggle” can be located at www.beacon.org/nguyen Beacon Press 25 Beacon Street Boston, Massachusetts 02108-2892 www.beacon.org Beacon Press books are published under the auspices of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations. © 2009 by Tram Nguyen All rights reserved Printed in the United States of America 12 11 10 09 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 This book is printed on acid-free paper that meets the uncoated paper ANSI/NISO specifications for permanence as revised in 1992. Text design by Susan E. Kelly at Wilsted & Taylor Publishing Services Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Language is a place of struggle : great quotes by people of color / edited by Tram Nguyen. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-8070-4800-9 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Minorities—United States—Quotations. 2. Immigrants—United States—Quotations. 3. United States—Race relations—Quotations, maxims, etc. 4. United States—Ethnic relations—Quotations, maxims, etc. 5. United States—Social conditions—Quotations, maxims, etc. 6. Social change—United States—Quotations, maxims, etc. 7. Community life—United States—Quotations, maxims, etc. 8. Social justice—United States— Quotations, maxims, etc. 9. Spirituality—Quotations, maxims, etc. I. Nguyen, Tram. E184.A1L259 2008 305.8—dc22 2008015487 Contents Foreword vii Chapter 1 Roots 1 History 1 Race, Ethnicity, and Racism 7 Surviving 30 Migrations 42 Chapter 2 Selves 53 Identities 53 Education 67 Gender and Sexuality 77 Wisdom 88 Chapter 3 Relationship 112 Love 112 Family and Friendship 120 Community 130 Chapter 4 Work and Play 138 Labor 138 Economic Justice 142 Arts and Culture 151 Chapter 5 Making Change 169 Organizing and Activism 169 Leadership 192 Peace and Justice 200 Environmental Justice 230 Chapter 6 Inner Visions 239 Spirit 239 Faith 244 Inspirations 250 Acknowledgments 263 Name Index 265 Foreword Why a book of quotes by people of color? Well, first of all, we’ve said a lot and have a lot worth saying. And secondly, at the time of this printing, there still has yet to be such a multiracial, multicultural col- lection dedicated specifically to quotes from across communities of color in the U.S. Like many people, I suspect, I keep my own little collection of memo- rable words by others. My notebooks and diaries are full of these jot- tings of words—words that I came across while reading something, seeing something on TV or listening to someone talk—along with cut- tings that I’ve pasted onto my computer and onto my desk. Something about a good quote manages to capture a feeling, a situation, or an ob- servation just so. They can be short quips, funny, or profound, or some- times long and thoughtful .. There isn’t any one formula for what makes a quote something you want to remember and want to share. I suppose what good quotes have in common seems to be their ability to speak to a larger truth that resonates with almost everyone, truths about the condition of human life filtered through all the wonderfully distinct perspectives and voices of the speakers. Of course, gathering such a collection was an entirely subjective pro - cess, and in many ways a matter of personal taste. I let myself be guided by what struck me as true, insightful or valuable, and what delighted my ear. Being an ardent book lover, this collection became an extension of the feeling I have toward my books—companions for the journey of vii viii Foreword life. I like to think of a quote book as a condensed library in that sense, and sort of like having friends at your fingertips—smart, wise, funny and diverse friends from the historically significant to up-and-coming contemporary voices. Having said that, there is more of a guiding principle to this book than just my own whimsies. The quotes have been organized into six chap- ters: Roots, Selves, Relationship, Work and Play, Making Change, and Inner Visions. As you can see, the chapters are meant to tell a larger story about people of color in the context of history, culture, and com- munity, becoming oneself and relating to others, realizing social injus- tice and doing something about it, and finally, as with all good quotes, imparting some wisdom and inspiration at the end of it all. To quote from a quote itself, by longtime educator Glenn Omatsu, this book is shaped by “three main themes in the history of people of color in America: first, the significance of mass movements and the role of individuals in relation to these movements; second, the enduring vision of a new society that propels these movements forward; and third, the fundamental link between changing society and transforming oneself.” The quotes are drawn primarily from Black, Latino, Asian American, American Indian, and immigrant sources. To keep things simple, I’ve listed authors’ racial identities according to these broad categories, real- izing the vast diversity encompassed within each one. And as for why these particular terminologies, I must refer to scholar (and quote source) Beverly Daniel Tatum’s book Why Are All the Black Kids Sit- ting Together in the Cafeteria? for an excellent and succinct explanation of racial categories. To paraphrase, Black is used in order to be inclu- sive of all people of African descent, such as those from the Caribbean and African immigrants as well as Black Americans. Latino is used as a term that is broad and widely accepted enough to encompass people of Latin American descent, including the Mexican American move- ment identity of Chicano. Asian American and American Indian are also Foreword ix widely used and accepted umbrella terms for Asian and Pacific Islander communities and indigenous peoples. But aside from practical consid- erations, these terms are also closer to the liberation movements that defined racial justice struggles for people of color, and produced many of the writers, scholars, poets, activists, and artists whose words grace these pages. chapter 1 Roots History 1 I have noticed that whenever you have soldiers in the story it is called history. Before their arrival it is called myth, folktale, legend, fairy tale, oral poetry, ethnography. After the soldiers arrive, it is called history. —Paula Gunn Allen, American Indian writer 2 Yesterday is gone, but we must hold on to it anyway. Its meaning is the sense of our lives. We must be careful not to fictionalize and romanticize our stories. We must look at the beauty and the failures of our history with equal love and understanding. —Walter Mosley, Black novelist 3 The Gringo, locked into the fiction of white superiority, seized complete political power, stripping Indians and Mexicans of their land while their feet were still rooted in it. Con el destierro y el exilo fuimos desuñados, destroncados, destripados—we were jerked out by the roots, truncated, disemboweled, dispos- sessed, and separated from our identity and our history. —Gloria Anzaldúa, Latina writer 1 2 Chapter 1: Roots 4 America is filled with people whose histories have deep and complicated roots. Their stories give us alternative views to the grand narrative of Western European progress, modernization, and enlightenment. Often, they directly contradict the fictions the United States tells about itself as a nation as benev- olent abroad and inclusive at home. —Elaine Kim, Asian American scholar 5 Who could possibly have more stories to tell than we—a resilient and in- destructible people with a catastrophic, prophetic and almost unbelievable his- tory? —Kalisha Buckhanan, Black novelist 6 History has determined our lives, and we must work hard for what we be- lieve to be the right thing .. life is something we borrow and must give back richer when the time comes. —Carlos Bulosan, Asian American writer 7 Americans, in addition to their staggering ignorance, also seem to think that everything happened yesterday. —Randall Robinson, Black activist 8 Anecdotes, / The poor man’s history. —Rita Dove, Black poet 9 Our tribe unraveled like a coarse rope, frayed at either end as the old and new among us were taken. —Louise Erdrich, American Indian novelist History 3 10 A misunderstanding of the Black freedom movement—and therefore of the history of this country—had dire consequences for everyone, especially for all of us who believe that there is still the possibility of creating a “more perfect Union” in this land. —Vincent Harding, Black scholar 11 I suppose in the final analysis, that is what history is about—what we re- member, what perspective our memory reflects, and what we lie about to make the point we want to make. —Chris Iijima, Asian American law professor and singer 12 I guess I would have been a completely different person had I not gone to [the internment] camp. Maybe I would have been something worthwhile. —Henry Miyatake, Asian American redress activist 13 I learned a history not then written in books but one passed from gener- ation to generation on the steps of moonlit porches and beside dying fires in one-room houses, a history of great-grandparents and of slavery and of the days following slavery; of those who lived still not free, yet who would not let their spirits be enslaved. —Mildred Taylor, Black writer 14 It’s so important to maintain a historical perspective and understand our own struggles in relation to others, and to understand what realities shape our uneasy proximities. —Vijay Iyer, South Asian musician 15 There is no life that does not contribute to history.