The making of an American begins at the point where he himself rejects all other ties, any other history, and himself adopts the vesture of his adopted land. – James Baldwin
Experience that destroys innocents also leads one back to it. – James Baldwin
All art is a kind of confession, more or less oblique. All artists, if they are to survive, are forced, at last, to tell the whole story; to vomit the anguish up. – James Baldwin
The moment we break faith with one another, the sea engulfs us and the light goes out. – James Baldwin
Without comprehension, the immigrant would forever remain shut — a stranger in America. Until America can release the heart as well as train the hand of the immigrant, he would forever remain driven back upon himself, corroded by the very richness of the unused gifts within his soul. – Anzia Yezierska