We ask only that the law shall work alike on all men.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the importance of equality before the law for everyone.
Chief Joseph's quote highlights the fundamental principle of justice that the law should apply equally to all individuals, regardless of their status or identity. It advocates for a fair legal system where no one is above the law, underscoring the significance of equality and justice in society.
In practice
During a speech advocating for civil rights, one could say this quote to emphasize the need for legal reform.
We do not want churches because they will teach us to quarrel about God. We do not want to learn that. We may quarrel with men sometimes about things on this earth, but we never quarrel about the Great Spirit. We do not want to learn that.
Let me be a free man, free to travel, free to stop, free to work, free to trade where I choose, free to choose my own teachers, free to follow the religion of my fathers, free to talk, think and act for myself β and I will obey every law or submit to the penalty.
It makes my heart sick when I remember all the good words and the broken promises.
If the white man wants to live in peace with the Indian, he can live in peace. There need be no trouble. Treat all men alike. give them all the same law. Give them all an even chance to live and grow.
The earth is the mother of all people, and all people should have equal rights upon it.
All men were made by the Great Spirit Chief. They are all brothers.
The prison is not the only institution that has posed complex challenges to the people who have lived with it and have become so inured to its presence that they could not conΒceive of society without it. Within the history of the United States the system of slavery immediately comes to mind.
Lord of Lords, grant us the good whether we pray for it or not, but evil keep from us, even though we pray for it.
What's more condescending and corny than someone telling you how much more money they have than you and telling you basically, 'I don't care about poor people,' which is a large part of what you hear of corporate hip-hop on the radio.
I believe life is an intelligent thing: that things aren't random.
I am much inclined to live from my rucksack, and let my trousers fray as they like.
One has freedom as the principal means of action; the other has servitude. Their . . . paths [are] diverse; nevertheless, each seems called by some secret design of Providence one day to hold in its hands the destinies of half the world.
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