Latest Tavis Smiley Quotes from Interviews

Quotes about:

• I'm always fascinated by people from the Midwest, because it is so different than Hollywood, who discover at some point that they want to be in Hollywood.

  Tavis Smiley

  People, Different

  Source: www.pbs.org

• Life is about committing ourselves on a daily basis to the best in us. Freedom is a state of mind. Freedom is an attitude. Freedom is a spirit. You may be behind bars, but you still have the capacity to be free. I've visited some people behind bars who are freer than Negroes I see running around every day. Being in jail, or poor, or uneducated doesn't determine how free you can be. There are really only two types of people. Either you're running scared or you're running free. I choose to run free, and you can, too, no matter what your circumstances in life.

  Tavis Smiley

  Running, Attitude, People

  Source: aalbc.com

• I believed that President Obama was a good choice a couple of years ago because I felt that, as a black man, if he could win, it would open up progressive possibilities in this country for a lot of people. That was my major reason for believing his candidacy was a good thing. However, I don't endorse candidates, given the type of work that I do. My job is to hold people accountable.

  Tavis Smiley

  Country, Couple, Believe

  Source: aalbc.com

• Be careful about gossiping because loose lips really do sink ships. Now that I'm in the broadcast business, and people talk about me, I know what it feels like to be the victim of gossip.

  Tavis Smiley

  Gossip, People, Victim

  Source: aalbc.com

• There are really only two types of people. Either you're running scared or you're running free. I choose to run free, and you can, too, no matter what your circumstances in life.

  Tavis Smiley

  Running, Two, People

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• Even behind bars, even on Death Row, you can fail up, because life is about committing ourselves on a daily basis to the best in us. Freedom is a state of mind. Freedom is an attitude. Freedom is a spirit. You may be behind bars, but you still have the capacity to be free.

  Tavis Smiley

  Attitude, Mind Freedom, May

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• I believe there is nothing we endure in life that you can't recover from. Failure is not fatal. Everyone has the capacity to fail up.

  Tavis Smiley

  Believe, Failing, Capacity

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• I don't want the Obama era to be more about symbolism than substance when it comes to black people. I love him, but I love black people even more.

  Tavis Smiley

  I Love Him, Symbolism, People

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• I feel blessed to be in the broadcast business for 20 years. I believe that when you're this blessed, you have an obligation to pay it forward. That's what life is all about ultimately.

  Tavis Smiley

  Believe, Blessed, Years

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• I don't think I'd live anything over, even though I've made a lot of mistakes. I have learned how to see failure as a friend. So, I'm not one to live a life of regrets. I try to learn from my mistakes, but I'll take my life the way it is.

  Tavis Smiley

  Regret, Mistake, Thinking

• Sometimes even your friends don't understand your calling, your purpose, your vocation. But you have to stand in your truth anyway, and they will eventually come around to understanding you, if you do it lovingly.

  Tavis Smiley

  Understanding, Purpose, Calling

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• Be careful about gossiping because loose lips really do sink ships.

  Tavis Smiley

  Ships, Lips, Be Careful

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• The City of Angels is a microcosm of the world, and so living in L.A. makes me feel like a citizen of the world.

  Tavis Smiley

  Angel, Cities, Citizens

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• Democrats, too often, take blacks for granted, and Republicans, too often, simply ignore black voters.

  Tavis Smiley

  Black, Voters, Republican

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• We need to elect leaders who understand that leadership is about loving and serving people, not about self-advancement.

  Tavis Smiley

  Self, People, Leader

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• Even in the era of the first black president, racism is still the most intractable issue in USA. Regarding poverty, half of all Americans are either in or near poverty. Poverty is certainly worse for African-Americans now than it was during King's lifetime.

  Tavis Smiley

  Kings, Issues, Usa

  "Tavis Smiley on repositioning Dr. King as a revolutionary". Interview With Kam Williams, baystatebanner.com. December 11, 2014.

• Loving your enemy is a radical concept.

  Tavis Smiley

  Loving You, Enemy, Radical

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• We come to know who we really are in life during the dark and difficult and desolate days of our journey.

  Tavis Smiley

  Dark, Journey, Difficult

  Source: www.pittsburghurbanmedia.com

• Every community has a Martin Luther King Boulevard. It's the cornerstone we all know. It's not just a street or boulevard, but a place where Walmart stands together with your community to make every day better.

  Tavis Smiley

  Kings, Community, Together

  Source: www.pbs.org

• He was a humanist then, he's a humanist now, and to my mind John Carlos is an authentic American hero.

  Tavis Smiley

  Hero, Mind, Humanist

  Source: www.pbs.org

• [John Carlos] has spent much of his life since that time as a dedicated human rights advocate and public speaker, and he is out now with a wonderful new text; a memoir, in fact.

  Tavis Smiley

  Rights, Facts, Wonderful

  Source: www.pbs.org

• John Carlos provided the world with one of the most iconic images of the 1960s with his Black Power salute after a medal-winning performance at the 1968 summer games.

  Tavis Smiley

  Summer, Winning, Games

  Source: www.pbs.org

• Music is the soundtrack of our lives, it's essential for our lives.

  Tavis Smiley

  Essentials, Soundtracks, Music Is

  Source: www.pbs.org

• Struggling to stay in the middle class, and I love that. That's me and my dad and my family.

  Tavis Smiley

  Dad, Struggle, Class

  Source: www.pbs.org

• I love my cross-sectioned, cross-cultural audience. Some of them are doing better than the average guy, but my audience has always been people who are struggling to stay in the middle class.

  Tavis Smiley

  Struggle, Average, Class

  Source: www.pbs.org