Challenges make you discover things about yourself that you never really knew. They're what make the instrument stretch - what make you go beyond the norm.

The moment anyone tries to demean or degrade you in any way, you have to know how great you are. Nobody would bother to beat you down if you were not a threat.

I am not a quitter. I will fight until I drop. It is just a matter of having some faith in the fact that as long as you are able to draw breath in the universe, you have a chance.

If each person in this world will simply take a small piece of this huge thing, this amazing quilt, and work it regardless of the color of the yarn, we will have harmony on this planet.

I saw that I could not afford the luxury of just being an actress. So I made a choice to use my career as a platform to address the issues of the race I was born into.

Whatever good I have accomplished as an actress I believe came in direct proportion to my efforts to portray black women who have made positive contributions to my heritage.

You never know what motivates you.

All I have to do is find someone who has something to say that will enrich my life and they can't get rid of me.

Children should have a balanced start in life: a mother and a father. I think that's the only reason to get married.

We have to support our own films. If we don't, how can we expect others to support them?

I will lead my people out of bondage, Lord.

The family that reads together grows together!

We're lucky." He slipped his hand around her waist and splayed it in the small of her back. "Most couples have only one first kiss. We'll have two.

Poetry is the dark side of the moon.

It was the class and dignity which he led his life that made him part of all of us. I will forever treasure the close friendship we shared over the years.

Leaders will not experience long-term success unless a lot of people want them to.

The truth is known in silence. Be still and know.

If a consensus of the majority is all it takes to determine what is right, then having and controlling information becomes extraordinarily important.

It's in your hands to make the world a better place.

You give your film away to the audience once it's done. I never look at my films after the premier. The film needs to start its own history.

We will act consistently with our view of who we truly are, whether that view is accurate or not.