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.
Interpretation
Harmony is possible when everyone is treated equally and given the same opportunities.
This quote expresses the idea that peaceful coexistence between different cultures, specifically between white people and Native Americans, is achievable if mutual respect and equality are upheld. Chief Joseph emphasizes the importance of treating all individuals with fairness and providing them with the same rights and opportunities, which are essential for harmonious relationships and societal growth.
In practice
This quote can be used in a discussion about equality during a community meeting.
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 — 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.
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.
Our chiefs are killed. . . . The little children are freezing to death. . . . My people have no blankets, no food. . . . My heart is sick and sad. . . . I will fight no more forever.
Home is where somebody notices when you are no longer there.
When two people relate to each other authentically and humanly, God is the electricity that surges between them.
It's an interesting combination: Having a great fear of being alone, and having a desperate need for solitude and the solitary experience. That's always been a tug of war for me.
We're reminded yet again: we are stronger, we are smarter, we have more fun when we include each other - when we include as many perspectives as possible.
She is sighing deeply now with sympathy and delight - the delight of an addict when someone else admits he's hooked, too.
I cried a river of tears but he was too heavy to float on them. So I dragged him with me these years across an ocean.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.