Young black men in this country have to understand that they have a responsibility. They cannot be the enemy in their own neighborhoods and usurp the effort of good people that are trying to make things work. – Jim Brown
It is up to God to take revenge. Only God can judge. I don’t have to worry about getting even with anybody or taking out any kind of aggression on anybody. Doing that is a weakness, anyway. – Jim Brown
The story of Jackie Robinson is also the story of Branch Rickey. He had many reasons for doing what he did, but he stood up against his own people. – Jim Brown
I have a theory. An audience doesn’t need to get wrapped up in blackness every time they see a Negro actor. And a movie doesn’t have to be about race just because there’s a Negro in it. – Jim Brown
If you truly believe something, and it’s incorrect, that doesn’t mean you don’t have integrity. – Jim Brown
If you’re an old cat around young girls, you got to have somethin’ to bring to the table. – Jim Brown
I don’t want football to not be played, but I would like the sophistication brought forth to take care of those who need to be taken care of and to take the precaution, at the sacrifice of winning, to take care of people. – Jim Brown
My biggest problem was to get the coaches to understand that I was a runner, and I wanted to prepare myself based upon the calisthenics I did and get myself ready. For example, I used my forearm when I ran the ball, so I didn’t want to do pushups because I wanted my forearms to heal. – Jim Brown
When you go out on a football field, you are responsible for taking care of yourself. The more rules you get, the less players truly take care of themselves. – Jim Brown
Michael Jordan brings millions of dollars when he shows up in an arena. Since money is how we judge people, he’s very valuable. But while that’s happening, Rome is burning within the black community. – Jim Brown
Nobody I ever broke bread with – and I see players all the time – talked about using their head running the football. I’ve seen Barry Sanders and Eric Dickerson and Marcus Allen and Franco Harris, and we’ve all been together – we were all together at the Super Bowl – and no one talked about using their head. – Jim Brown
Ben Schwartzwalder was a decent guy, but he was from another era. He was like a Marine, with a real army attitude. He thought there was only one way to play football, and that was the rough way. – Jim Brown
I run a program called Amer-I-Can. We’ve taught in prisons, schools, juvenile facilities and we teach in the community. We have the greatest record from the standpoint of dealing with grade point averages, disciplinary action and attendance in schools. – Jim Brown
I would never try to motivate anyone to follow me. I would motivate him to follow certain principles. – Jim Brown
I’m stuck with being No. 32 for the Cleveland Browns. I can’t do anything about that, and I don’t’ want to do anything about it. – Jim Brown
It’s too bad about ‘Dark of the Sun.’ It was really about Tshombe. When I read the script, I thought it was going to be a political movie, and I thought we might even have a hassle. But the director simplified it to brutality and bad taste. – Jim Brown
America says we are a great democratic society and other people should follow our example. Well, I say we benefited from slavery, and as a nation, we never faced that because the people in power chose not to. – Jim Brown
‘The Autobiography of Malcolm X.’ I’ve used it to demonstrate racial attitudes to people who I thought needed a better understanding of all human beings. Malcolm was not a racist. He was not looking for revenge. He realized that kindness and goodness did not come from any one kind of person. – Jim Brown
Ultimately, if you look at the game and there are two minutes left, and you have to ensure your victory, you don’t want to throw the damn football. You want a runner who can run the clock out. – Jim Brown
I look for good people and people that will be like-minded and help me try to do good for other human beings. – Jim Brown
Concussions have brought the consciousness to the problem, but I think the problem is football-related injuries, period, and the lack of support from the league of those players who have suffered those injuries. The denial factor has been unbelievable. I’m here because I’m a fighter to try to bring attention to this fact. – Jim Brown
Capitalistic society teaches kids to be No. 1, but true self-esteem doesn’t come from money. It doesn’t come from winning the Super Bowl. – Jim Brown
It doesn’t take science to know that when you have head-to-head collisions, there’s going to be some effect. – Jim Brown
Twenty-seven years incarcerated, his jailer became his best friend. So if you need an example on how we should act and how we should be, then Nelson Mandela is the man to follow. – Jim Brown