There are two things that have always haunted me: the brutality of the European traders and the stories I've heard about Africans selling other Africans into slavery.
Henry Louis GatesRead
It's important to debunk the myths of Africa being this benighted continent civilized only when white people arrived. In fact, Africans had been creators of culture for thousands of years before. These were very intelligent, subtle and sophisticated people, with organized societies and great art.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the rich history and culture of Africa prior to European colonization.
Henry Louis Gates highlights the importance of recognizing Africa's long-standing civilization, which existed well before the arrival of European settlers. He underlines that Africans were not only capable of creating complex societies and sophisticated art but were also intelligent and culturally rich, countering the prevailing myths that portray Africa as a place of ignorance until colonial influence.
Themes
AfricaCultureCivilizationHistoryMyths
In practice
Example use cases
In a lecture about African history, one could use this quote to challenge misconceptions.
More from Henry Louis Gates
All quotes →It's not white versus black any more, it's haves versus have-nots. Unless the black middle-classes unite to promote the interests of the black underclass, tension between them is inevitable. What we, the black middle class have to do, is think of a strategy to avert that.
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In America there is institutional racism that we all inherit and participate in, like breathing the air in this room - and we have to become sensitive to it.
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In fact, the class divide in the black community is now seen by some as a permanent aspect of our existence.
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The historical basis for the gap between the black middle class and underclass shows that ending discrimination, by itself, would not eradicate black poverty and dysfunction. We also need intervention to promulgate a middle-class ethic of success among the poor, while expanding opportunities for economic betterment.
Henry Louis GatesRead
The only people who live in a post-black world are four people who live in a little white house on Pennsylvania Avenue. The idea that America is post-racial or post-black because a man I admire, Barack Obama, is president of the United States, is a joke. And I hope no one will even wonder about this crazy fiction again.
Henry Louis GatesRead
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