I will, in the name of humanity which is outraged, in the name of liberty which is fettered, in the name of the constitution and the Bible, which are disregarded and trampled upon, dare to call in question and to denounce, with all the emphasis I can command, everything that serves to perpetuate slavery

For it is not light that is needed, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake. The feeling of the nation must be quickened; the conscience of the nation must be roused; the propriety of the nation must be startled; the hypocrisy of the nation must be exposed; and its crimes against God and man must be proclaimed and denounced.

The ground which a colored man occupies in this country is, every inch of it, sternly disputed.

Though conscious of the difficulty of learning without a teacher, I set out with high hope, and a fixed purpose, at whatever cost of trouble, to learn how to read.

Intelligence is a great leveler here as elsewhere

No man can put a chain about the ankle of his fellow man without at last finding the other end fastened about his own neck.

It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.

The soul that is within me no man can degrade.

Right is of no sex, Truth is of no color, God is the Father of us all, and we are all Brethren.

Knowledge unfits a child to be a slave