You know, the thing I always think about, you get up early in the morning to go to work and there’s some dude outside drinking and you come home and the same dude is outside drinking hanging on the corner. And then this engenders a level of anger I think and a level of shame.
TA-NEHISI COATESTo prevent enabling oppression, we demand that black people be twice as good.
More Ta-Nehisi Coates Quotes
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The symbolism was in – and this sounds really, really small, but it’s actually big for African-Americans – the symbolism was not in being an embarrassment, but to being a figure that folks were actually proud of.
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And they necessitate that of the bodies destroyed every year, some wild and disproportionate number of them will be black.
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The essence of American racism is disrespect.
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Racism is, among other things.
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Is the Jewish race thriftier than the Arab race?
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Talk about class and hope no one notices.
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The Knowledge Rule 2080: From maggots to men, the world is a corner bully.
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To prevent verifying stereotypes, we pledge to never eat a slice a watermelon in front of white people.
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Racism is not merely a simplistic hatred. It is, more often, broad sympathy toward some and broader skepticism toward others.
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If George Washington crossing the Delaware matters, so must his ruthless pursuit of the runagate Oney Judge.
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Better you knuckle up and go for yours than have to bow your head and tuck your chain.
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Never forget that for 250 years black people were born into chains-whole generations followed by more generations who knew nothing but chains.
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I want to be really, really clear about this. It doesn’t mean that everyone or even the majority of people who voted for Donald Trump are racist or white supremacists or anything like that. But what it means is that it’s not a mistake that Trump began his campaign with birthersism .
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This feeling African-Americans have, this skepticism towards the police and the skepticism that the police show towards African-Americans is actually quite old. And it may be one of the most durable aspects of the relationship between black people and their country really in our history.
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The greatest reward of this constant interrogation, confrontation with the brutality of my country, is that it has freed me from hosts and myths.
TA-NEHISI COATES