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" I live in New York City, the stories of my films take place in New York; I'm a New York filmmaker. "

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" I'm riding my man Obama. I think he's a visionary. Actually, Barack told me the first date he took Michelle to was 'Do the Right Thing.' I said, Thank God I made it. Otherwise you would have taken her to 'Soul Man.' Michelle would have been like 'What's wrong with this brother?' "

" My cousin Malcolm Lee is also a filmmaker. "

" I'm very careful about how I portray violence in my films. I do believe that violence, especially violent video games, are not a good thing for young kids. "

" I've been blessed with the opportunity to express the views of black people who otherwise don't have access to power and the media. I have to take advantage of that while I'm still bankable. "

" Since the days of slavery, if you were a good singer or dancer, it was your job to perform for the master after dinner. "

" My grandmother lived to be 100 years old. Her grandmother was a slave, yet she was a college graduate in the Spellman class of 1917. She taught art for 50 years and she saved her Social Security checks for her children's education. "

" Everything I do is always scrutinised. But that's all I'll say about that. "

" It has been my observation that parents kill more dreams than anybody. "

" I'd like to state that Spike Lee is not saying that African American culture is just for black people alone to enjoy and cherish. Culture is for everybody. "

" I respect the audience's intelligence a lot, and that's why I don't try to go for the lowest common denominator. "

" Amongst black people, you have always heard it said that once a black man reaches a certain level, especially if you are an entertainer, you get a white trophy woman. I didn't make that up. "

" There's a lot of Americans, black and white, who think that we've arrived where we need to be and nothing else needs to be done and affirmative action needs to be dismantled. "

" The truth is I've been doing Kickstarter before there was Kickstarter; there was no Internet. Social Media was writing letters, making phone calls, beating the bushes. "

" Any time you talk about the look of the film, it's not just the director and the director of photography. You have to include the costume designer and the production designer. "

" I used the principles of Kickstarter to make 'She's Gotta Have It.' We filmed that in 1985 to 1986. The final cost was $175,000. I didn't have that money. It was friends, grants, donations. We saved our bottles for the nickel deposit. "

" 'Do the Right Thing' was my first union film. I looked at the rosters, and for the most part, it was white males. Especially the Teamsters. So we had some conversations. "

Do The Right Thing

" We grew up in a very creative environment and were exposed to the arts at a very young age, so it's not a surprise that all of us are in some form of the arts. "

" I don't like acting; not in front of the camera. "

" I had a great education. From kindergarten to John Dewey High School in Coney Island, I am public-school educated. "

" First of all, what in this world does not revolve around money? But money is a big part of film, unlike a lot of other art forms. "

" I don't think I'm a total pessimist, so I think you can find hope in all my films. "

" If we became students of Malcolm X, we would not have young black men out there killing each other like they're killing each other now. Young black men would not be impregnating young black women at the rate going on now. We'd not have the drugs we have now, or the alcoholism. "

" Fight the power that be. Fight the power. "

" People sometimes forget all the films that we've done. They remember the likes of 'Malcolm X' and 'Do the Right Thing.' But I've been working since 1986. From the beginning, I was determined to not just be a flash in the pan. I've got to keep up with Woody Allen. He's lapping me. "

Do The Right Thing

" When I went to school, you had to take art, you had to play an instrument. You had to play an instrument. But it's all degraded since then. I do not know what kind of nation we are that is cutting art, music, and gym out of the public-school curriculum. "

" I think that every minority in the United States of America knows everything about the dominant culture. From the time you can think, you are bombarded with images from TV, film, magazines, newspapers. "

" Violence is a part of America. I don't want to single out rap music. Let's be honest. America's the most violent country in the history of the world, that's just the way it is. We're all affected by it. "

" I think my work shows that I love women. I understand where these types of criticisms are coming from because black people have been so dogged out in the media, they're just extra sensitive. "

" I knew I was never going to play professional sport, but I loved playing and I went to all the games I could afford to. "

" A lot of times you get credit for stuff in your movies you didn't intend to be there. "