We really suffer from a hot-take disease, wanting to be the first one who has the hottest take.
W. Kamau BellRead
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.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the pervasive and foundational nature of racism in the country's history and ongoing inequalities.
W. Kamau Bell's quote highlights the deep-rooted and systemic nature of racism in the foundations of the country. It suggests that racism is not just a historical issue but continues to manifest in contemporary societal structures, particularly in wealth and housing disparities, suggesting that these inequalities are sustained by the same racist foundations that once built the nation.
Themes
RacismInequalityWealth DisparityHousing DisparitySystemic RacismHistory
In practice
Example use cases
During a panel discussion on social justice.
More from W. Kamau Bell
All quotes →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.
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I've turned the annoying questions that white people ask into a career, so I understand that's where I live.
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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.
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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
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