"I believe it to be a fact that the colored people of this country know and understand the white people better than the white people know and understand them"
- James Weldon Johnson
About this Quote
This quote by James Weldon Johnson talks to the power dynamics in between white individuals and people of color in the United States. Johnson recommends that people of color have a better understanding of white people than white individuals have of them. This might be due to the reality that people of color have actually needed to live in a society that is controlled by white people, and therefore have needed to learn to browse and comprehend the white power structure in order to endure. On the other hand, white individuals have not had to do the exact same, and hence might not have the very same level of understanding of people of color. This quote speaks to the need for white people to put in the time to find out about and understand people of color, and to acknowledge the power dynamics that exist between the two groups.
"The opportunity to create a small world between two pieces of cardboard, where time exists yet stands still, where people talk and I tell them what to say, is exciting and rewarding"
