I know Great Spirit is looking down upon me from above, and will hear what I say.
Sitting BullRead
What white man can say I never stole his land or a penny of his money? Yet they say that I am a thief.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Sitting Bull highlights the hypocrisy and injustice of accusing others of theft while having a history of taking from them.
In this quote, Sitting Bull points out the irony in the accusations against Indigenous peoples, suggesting that the oppressors have taken land and wealth from them, yet label them as thieves. It reflects the struggle for justice and acknowledgment of historical wrongs, emphasizing the moral contradiction of those who benefit from such injustices while denying their impact on marginalized communities.
Themes
TheftLandJusticeHypocrisyColonialism
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used during discussions on land rights and indigenous sovereignty.
More from Sitting Bull
All quotes βI want to tell you that if the Great Spirit had chosen anyone to be the chief of this country, it is myself.
Sitting BullRead
Is it wrong for me to love my own? Is it wicked for me because my skin is red? Because I am Sioux? Because I was born where my father lived? Because I would die for my people and my country?
Sitting BullRead
When I was a boy, the Sioux owned the world. The sun rose and set on their land; they sent ten thousand men to battle. Where are the warriors today? Who slew them? Where are our lands? Who owns them?
Sitting BullRead
Therefore, I do not wish to consider any proposition to cede any portion of our tribal holdings to the Great Father.
Sitting BullRead
I wish it to be remembered that I was the last man of my tribe to surrender my rifle.
Sitting BullRead
Similar quotes
The paternalist is a sentimentalist at heart, and the sentimentalist is always potentially cruel.
Christopher IsherwoodRead
Loneliness is the way by which destiny endeavors to lead man to himself.
Hermann HesseRead
Do you ever suddenly find it strange to be yourself?
Clarice LispectorRead
Lies are essential to humanity. They are perhaps as important as the pursuit of pleasure and moreover are dictated by that pursuit.
Marcel ProustRead
The words of a dead man are modified in the guts of the living.
W. H. AudenRead
Three passions, simple but overwhelmingly strong, have governed my life: the longing for love, the search for knowledge, and unbearable pity for the suffering of mankind.
Bertrand RussellRead