Shelton Jackson, also known as Spike Lee is an American professor, director, screenwriter, and producer. He has produced over 35 movies since 1983. He has also received several accolades for his work. Lee has ways spoken about racial relations, urban crime and poverty, the role of media in the world today, and various political issues. Here are some Spike Lee Quotes that will encourage you to embrace racial differences.
Inspiring Spike Lee Quotes
“I believe in destiny. But I also believe that you can’t just sit back and let destiny happen. A lot of times, an opportunity might fall into your lap, but you have to be ready for that opportunity. You can’t sit there waiting on it. A lot of times you are going to have to get out there and make it happen.” — Spike Lee
Also read:Top 35 Inspiring Eric Yuan Quotes On Business Quotes
“I think there’s a lot of hope in my work. I don’t think I’m a total pessimist, so I think you can find hope in all my films. Some more than others, but there’s definitely… I think we want to convey the feeling of hope with the montage at the end.” — Spike Lee Quotes
“I think it is very important that films make people look at what they’ve forgotten.” — Spike Lee
“He revolutionized music videos. Before Michael Jackson, MTV refused to play African-American artists.”
— Spike Lee
“American slavery was not a Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western. It was a holocaust. My ancestors are slaves. Stolen from Africa. I will honor them.” — Spike Lee
“You gotta make your own way. You gotta find a way. You gotta get it done. It’s hard. It’s tough. That’s what I tell my students every day in class. I’ve been very fortunate. Some people might call me a hardhead, but I’m not going to let other people dictate to me who I should be or the stories I should tell. That doesn’t register with me.” — Spike Lee
“It comes down to this: black people were stripped of our identities when we were brought here, and it’s been a quest since then to define who we are.” — Spike Lee
“It gets dangerous when you start allowing people to validate your work…” — Spike Lee Quotes
“All directors are storytellers, so the motivation was to tell the story I wanted to tell. That’s what I love.”
— Spike Lee
“I think black people have to be in control of their own image because film is a powerful medium. We can’t just sit back and let other people define our existence.” — Spike Lee
“Fight the power that be. Fight the power.” — Spike Lee Quotes
“We’ve gone through the names—Negro, African American, African, Black. For me that’s an indication of a people still trying to find their identity. Who determines what is black?” — Spike Lee
“A lot of times, we censor ourselves before the censor even gets there.” — Spike Lee
“Music is, for me, a great tool of a filmmaker, the same way cinematography, the acting, editing, post-production, the costumes are. You know, to help you tell a story.” — Spike Lee
“It has been my observation that parents kill more dreams than anybody.” — Spike Lee
“I’m not going to let other people dictate the stories I tell.” — Spike Lee
“I don’t think my films are going to get rid of racism or prejudice. I think the best thing my films can do is provoke discussion.” — Spike Lee
— Spike Lee
“I’d like to state that Spike Lee is not saying that African American culture is just for black people alone to enjoy and cherish. Culture is for everybody.” — Spike Lee
“Racism is when you have laws set up, systematically put in a way to keep people from advancing, to stop the advancement of a people. Black people have never had the power to enforce racism, and so this is something that white America is going to have to work out themselves. If they decide they want to stop it, curtail it, or to do the right thing… then it will be done, but not until then.” — Spike Lee
“When you love something it’s not a job anymore.” — Spike Lee
“People of color have a constant frustration of not being represented, or being misrepresented, and these images go around the world.” — Spike Lee
“I ain’t Martin Luther King. I don’t need a dream. I have a plan.” — Spike Lee Quotes
“I think people who have faults are a lot more interesting than people twho are perfect.”
— Spike Lee
“I don’t think racism can be eliminated in my lifetime … or my children’s or grandchildren’s. But I think it’s something we have to strive for. I’m going to keep working toward that day coming.” — Spike Lee
“Don’t think that because you haven’t heard from me for a while that I went to sleep. I am still here, like a spirit roaming the night. Thirsty, hungry, seldom stopping to rest.” — Spike Lee
“It is really important that young people find something that they want to do and pursue it with passion. I’m very passionate about filmmaking. It’s what I love to do.” — Spike Lee
“I may have been born yesterday, but I stayed up all night.” — Spike Lee
“I’m always open. I try not to have a closed mind. In fact the only reason why I’m able to continue to make films since 1986 is I have been adaptable. If I weren’t flexible I sure wouldn’t be making films this many years as I’ve been doing it. I’ve been making a film a year almost since 1986 and that’s hard. That ain’t easy.” — Spike Lee
“Our greatness, our talent has never been the question. It’s been a matter of grappling for control over what we do.”
— Spike Lee
“Those that’ll tell don’t know, and those that know won’t tell.” — Spike Lee
