227 Quotes About Black-history

Until now (1960, date of the first edition), the history of Black Africa has always been written with dates as dry as laundry lists, and no one has almost ever tried to find the key that unlocks the door to the intelligence, the understanding of African society.

What history had I inherited that left me an alien in my place of birth?

We don’t live in a meritocracy, and to pretend that simple hard work will elevate all to success is an exercise in wilful ignorance.

Race relations, when boiled down to the nitty-gritty, is about racist or prejudiced people and their relationship with, acceptance of, and welcoming of Black people. (from... How to Move Black America Forward)

The white economic and political elite often failed to recognize blacks as American, just as blacks often failed to recognize their potential for advancement outside of the limited opportunities afforded them by whites.

It’s infuriating that yesterday, my father had to pull all my younger cousins into a room and tell them to be more careful. He had to explain that in some cases, their brown skin convicts them before an offense is even committed.

The war that killed my grandfather and great-uncles and thousands of other blacks is only a footnote in our history books.

You were born where you were born and faced the future that you faced because you were black and for no other reason. The limits of your ambition were, thus, expected to be set forever. You were born into a society which spelled out with brutal clarity, and in as many ways as possible, that you were a worthless human being. You are not expected to aspire to excellence: you were expected to make peace with mediocrity.

We as a black culture have been through so much from slavery, lynching, dogs sicced on us,water hosed down, shot and killed in America. But we shall still overcome everything!