This is a country that was founded on racism. It was built on racism. It still continues to thrive through wealth disparity, and housing disparity is all built on the backs of racism.
W. Kamau BellRead
In communities of color, such as Ferguson, it often feels like the police are protecting the white community from us instead of protecting our communities from the criminal element.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote highlights the tension between law enforcement and communities of color, suggesting a lack of protection and trust.
W. Kamau Bell's quote addresses the complex relationship between police and communities of color, particularly in areas like Ferguson. It underscores a prevalent sentiment that law enforcement prioritizes the safety of white communities over genuinely protecting marginalized populations, thereby fostering mistrust and a sense of abandonment among those communities. This observation points to systemic issues within policing and raises important questions about equity and justice.
Themes
PoliceCommunityJusticeRaceTrust
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be used in a discussion about racial justice during a community meeting.
More from W. Kamau Bell
All quotes βWe really suffer from a hot-take disease, wanting to be the first one who has the hottest take.
W. Kamau BellRead
People born in Puerto Rico are U.S. citizens - except for the teeny, tiny, mind-boggling fact that if you live in Puerto Rico, you are not allowed to cast a vote in the election for president. That tiny fact starts to get bigger when you realize that electing our own leaders is the whole reason that we have a country in the first place.
W. Kamau BellRead
I've turned the annoying questions that white people ask into a career, so I understand that's where I live.
W. Kamau BellRead
We can't throw the worst part of racism into the dustbin of history.
W. Kamau BellRead
When we let cops talk about themselves as a separate community, then we are letting cops wall themselves off from the rest of us. We don't generally do that with any other jobs. We don't talk about the barista community or the Wal-Mart greeter community.
W. Kamau BellRead
Similar quotes
I'm also interested in the modern suggestion that you can have a combination of love and sex in a marriage - which no previous society has ever believed.
Alain De BottonRead
Vulnerability is based on mutuality and requires boundaries and trust. It's not oversharing, it's not purging, it's not indiscriminate disclosure, and it's not celebrity-style social media information dumps. Vulnerability is about sharing our feelings and our experiences with people who have earned the right to hear them.
Bren BrownRead
She is sighing deeply now with sympathy and delight - the delight of an addict when someone else admits he's hooked, too.
Christopher IsherwoodRead
Only married people understand you can be miserable and happy at the same time.
Chris RockRead
I'm not that complicated. My complications come out in my songs. All you need to do to be my friend is like me.
Taylor SwiftRead
I didn't hear anybody talking about the plight of a soldier coming back home and what he'd gone through. That was why I wrote about that stuff. If somebody else had done it, I probably wouldn't have touched the subject.
John PrineRead