If we had done the work that we should have done in the 20th century to combat our history of racial inequality, no one could win national office after demonizing people because they're Mexican or Muslim. We would be in a place where we would find that unacceptable.
Interpretation
The quote highlights the importance of addressing historical racial inequalities to create a more just society.
Bryan Stevenson emphasizes the need for society to confront and resolve the legacies of racial inequality from the past. He argues that if adequate efforts had been made in the 20th century to combat such inequalities, the current political climate, characterized by the demonization of marginalized groups like Mexicans and Muslims, would be deemed unacceptable. This statement serves as a call to action for individuals and leaders to prioritize justice and equity in order to foster a more inclusive and respectful society.
In practice
This quote can be used during a speech on social justice at a public rally.
That's my mission: I really want to get in the heads and hearts of kids and persuade them that they can believe things they haven't seen, they can do things that maybe others haven't done before them, that they are more than their worst acts.
We all have a responsibility to create a just society
One of the things that pains me is we have so tragically underestimated the trauma, the hardship we create in this country when we treat people unfairly, when we incarcerate them unfairly, when we condemn them unfairly.
Somebody has to stand when other people are sitting. Somebody has to speak when other people are quiet.
I grew up in a segregated community: I couldn't go to the public schools, beaches, certain parts of town.
The opposite of poverty is not wealth. I don't believe that. I actually think, in too many places, the opposite of poverty is justice.
When she bleeds the smells I know change colour. There is iron in her soul on those days. She smells like a gun.
If you can just see all the children of the world as your own, all the mothers of the world as you are, we can make a huge difference.
There are something like 300 anti-genocide chapters on college campuses around the country. It's bigger than the anti-apartheid movement. There are something like 500 high school chapters devoted to stopping the genocide in Darfur. Evangelicals have joined it. Jewish groups have joined it.
It doesn't need to be the same every day, doesn't need to be the same shower I use, the same restaurant I go to, the same hour I go to sleep. I've always been very flexible. I don't care if I practice at nine in the morning or 10 P.M.
The external reality and inner dynamic of happenings in Northern Ireland between 1968 and 1974 were symptomatic of change, violent change admittedly, but change nevertheless, and for the minority living there, change had been long overdue.
It's easy to get rid of things when there is an obvious reason for doing so. It's much more difficult when there is no compelling reason.
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