It is dangerous to be an American Negro male. America has never wanted its Negroes to be men, and does not, generally, treat them as men. It treats them as mascots, pets, or things.
James A. BaldwinRead
The purpose of education...is to create in a person the ability to look at the world for himself, to make his own decisions.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Education empowers individuals to think independently and make their own choices.
This quote by James A. Baldwin emphasizes the essential role of education in cultivating personal autonomy and critical thinking. Rather than merely absorbing information, the true purpose of education is to enable individuals to evaluate the world around them and form their own judgments, leading to stronger decision-making skills and personal growth.
Themes
EducationIndependenceDecision-MakingCritical ThinkingPersonal Growth
In practice
Example use cases
During a graduation speech, to inspire students about the value of their educational journey.
More from James A. Baldwin
All quotes βThe white man discovered the Cross by way of the Bible, but the black man discovered the Bible by way of the Cross.
James A. BaldwinRead
Those kids aren't dumb. But the people who run these schools want to make sure they don't get smart: they are really teaching the kids to be slaves.
James A. BaldwinRead
Experience, which destroys innocence, also leads one back to it.
James A. BaldwinRead
The reason people think it's important to be white is that they think it's important not to be black.
James A. BaldwinRead
The trick is to love somebody.... If you love one person, you see everybody else differently.
James A. BaldwinRead
Similar quotes
When I went to law school, which after all was back in the dark ages, we never looked beyond our borders for precedents. As a state court judge, it never would have occurred to me to do so, and when I got to the Supreme Court, it was very much the same. We just didn't do it.
Sandra Day O'ConnorRead
What does education do, what does it have to offer, when deprived of its necessary partner, the future, and face instead with - no future at all?
Graham SwiftRead
We need all hands on deck, and that means clearing hurdles for women and girls as they navigate careers in science, technology, engineering, and math.
Michelle ObamaRead
The single aim of my life is that every child is:_x000D_ free to be a child,_x000D_ free to grow and develop,_x000D_ free to eat, sleep, see daylight,_x000D_ free to laugh and cry,_x000D_ free to play,_x000D_ free to learn, free to go to school, and above all, free to dream.
Kailash SatyarthiRead
The mother is the first teacher of the child. The message she gives that child, that child gives to the world.
Malcolm XRead
Live in the serene peace of laboratories and libraries
Louis PasteurRead