Chester Himes Quotes

8 Sourced Quotes

If one lives in a country where racism is held valid and practiced in all ways of life eventually, no matter whether one is a racist or a victim, one comes to feel the absurdity of life....Racism generated from whites is first of all absurd. Racism creates absurdity among blacks as a defense mechanism.

Chester Himes
The Harlem of my books was never meant to be real; I never called it real; I just wanted to take it away from the white man if only in my books.

Chester Himes
My feelings are too intense. I hate too bitterly, I love too exaltingly, I pity too extravagantly, I hurt too painfully. We American blacks call that "soul."

Chester Himes
When you get to mixing sex and religion, it will make anybody crazy.

Chester Himes
"Yeah, the Colonel thought the Back-to-Africa movement was as sinful and un-American as bolshevism and should be stamped out at any cost," Coffin Ed added. "I suppose he thought it was the American thing to do to rob those colored people out of their money," Anderson said sarcastically. "Well, ain't it?" Coffin Ed said.

Chester Himes
American violence is public life, it's a public way of life, it became a form, a detective story form. So I should think that any number of black writers should go into the detective story form.

Chester Himes
Martyrs are needed to create incidents. Incidents are needed to create revolutions. Revolutions are needed to create progress.

Chester Himes
Democracy is not tolerance. Democracy is a prescribed way of life erected on the premise that all men are created equal.

Chester Himes