Humor gives a people dignity in situations that denigrate them. Laughter gives us relief from the burden of dailiness. No amount of coercion can break an unbreakable spirit, humor teaches us. And someday that cagey old man, buried deep in our spirits, becomes the patron saint of our own silent, laughing resistance to systems that reject us but cannot survive our disdain. Humor cuts oppressors down to size, takes their sting away, renders them powerless to destroy us. Don't give in to what diminishes you. Learn to laugh at it and reduce its power over you.
— Joan Chittister, Songs of Joy