Quotes from Michael Franti

Our country was founded on immigration. We are all occupying Native American land here. At what point do we say 'It's our land, and nobody else can come here.'

With all the people hating and hurting each other, I don't understand how people could get upset about people of the same sex caring for each other.

My parents said sticks and stones will break your bones but names will never hurt you. But I always felt a sense of exhilaration after a fight; it was the names that really hurt me.

I try to use the attention that I get to help and to serve, and that's really what I'd see as my work - to serve my community, serve the planet, serve my family. And I think a celebrity is someone who draws the attention on themselves, and then it kind of stops there.

It really is a strange time we're living in, when saying 'Don't kill people' is considered a radical point of view.

Everybody's opinion is equally valid, and I feel like everybody should have an opportunity to speak out, and everyone should have the courage to speak out.

Music gives us new energy and a stronger sense of purpose.

I'm always trying to find optimistic ways to express myself.

I have a desire that I want to make people feel happy through my music. I'm always trying to find optimistic ways to express myself.

I drive a hybrid. It's a Ford Escape. That's my only car.

I really believe that, as an artist, my opportunity to help to bring about awakening is one that should come from a personal process that someone has, and not from me telling somebody that this is the way it is.

I really encourage people to travel so we can see how the rest of the world views our country. That's really important. Secondly, as artists, activists, and citizens who vote, we have to begin to vote from our heart.

All the freaky people make the beauty of the world.

We can bomb the world to pieces, but we can't bomb it into peace.

During my travels in Iraq, Israel, Gaza, Brazil, Indonesia, Japan, Europe and all over the United States, I have seen and heard the voices of people who want change. They want the stabilization of the economy, education and healthcare for all, renewable energy and an environmental vision with an eye on generations to come.

Every single soul is a poem.

Power to the peaceful!