Quotes About Heritage

When members of a society wish to secure that society's rich heritage they cherish their arts and respect their artists. The esteem with which we regard the multiple cultures offered in our country enhances our possibilities for healthy survival and continued social development.

For Africa to me... is more than a glamorous fact. It is a historical truth. No man can know where he is going unless he knows exactly where he has been and exactly how he arrived at his present place.

All I got to do is stay black and die.

The Black woman in the South who raises sons, grandsons and nephews had her heartstrings tied to a hanging noose.

If you're going to live, leave a legacy. Make a mark on the world that can't be erased."-Maya Angelou

I made no attempt to wipe away the tears. I could not claim a forefather who came to America on the Mayflower. Nor did any ancestor of mine amass riches to leave me free from toil. My great-grandparents were illiterate when their fellow men were signing the Declaration of Independence, and the first families of my people were bought separately and sold apart, nameless and without traces – yet there was this: 'Deep River My home is over Jordan.

Ev'ry Voice and Sing"—words by James Weldon Johnson and music by J. Rosamond Johnson. Copyright by Edward B. Marks Music Corporation. Used by permission.

The more you know of your history, the more liberated you are.

I left Sonny and walked around, rustling myself in the sounds and feasting my eyes on the tasty colors of my people.

If you're going to live, leave a legacy. Make a mark on the world that can't be erased.

Momma, always self-conscious at public displays of emotions not traceable to a religious source, told me to come with her and we'd bring the bread and bowls.

I was no longer simply a member of the proud graduating class of 1940; I was a proud member of the wonderful, beautiful Negro race.

Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, I am the dream and the hope of the slave

I can command the Royal Genovian Air Force, Grandmère supposedly replied. As well as the Royal Genovian Navy. But the one thing in the world I have no control over, Helen, is your womb. Now come along.

Cementerio El Encinal meant Cemetery of Many Oaks (I'm taking Spanish so that when Jesse and I have kids, I'll understand what he's saying when he yells at them in his mother tongue).

Chez Paolo," Grandmère said. Chez Paolo means "Paul's house.

Wong Fong from Hong Kong.

You didn't know I could do that, did you? he asked, conversationally. I did not, Your Majesty, Teleus gasped. My grandfather killed a man that way once, using the edge of the wooden sword. I hadn't realized the Thieves of Eddis were so warlike. They aren't, mostly. But like all men, Teleus, I have two grandfathers. Teleus rolled his eyes to look up at him, and the king said, One of mine was Eddis. Ah, said Teleus. Ah, indeed, said the king.

For Alex to be enveloped into one of New York State's blue-ribbon families helped put to bed a lifetime of doubts and depression about his own dubious birthright.

Prove that you are my daughter, prove that you are mine. Prove to me that you are the blood of the dragon. Prove you are worthy of that mark on your skin.

She's fifth-generation Mexican American, which means she learned Spanish in class just like I did.

It helped that Amelia looked more like her mother's side of the family, and it was startling to see how easy it was to pass.

some of our descendents

My kith and kin have long since vanished into time—