I saw that I could not afford the luxury of just being an actress. So I made a choice to use my career as a platform to address the issues of the race I was born into.
Interpretation
Cicely Tyson emphasizes the importance of using one's career to advocate for important social issues.
In this quote, Cicely Tyson reflects on her decision to transcend the role of merely being an actress and to utilize her platform to confront the challenges faced by her community. This speaks to the notion that individuals can and should leverage their talents and careers to effect positive change in society, especially regarding issues of race and equality.
In practice
This quote can be used in a speech about the importance of advocacy in professional fields.
How do you project a character if you don't have a sense of where she is from? I've always just gotten on a plane to go to the area to get a sense of what it is like, to smell it, feel the earth, hear people talk, go to the marketplaces.
I don't think you can measure wealth in dollars and cents. I really don't believe that at all because there are some things that money cannot buy. One of them is health. And the other is security in your relationships and friends.
One of the things I have always said about the man-woman relationship is that I don't want anybody to walk ahead of me, and I don't want anybody to walk behind me. I want a man who will walk along beside me. And that's how I feel about equal rights.
Unless a piece really said something, I had no interest in it. I have got to know that I have served some purpose here.
When I attack a role, be it TV, film or stage, the first thing I say is, I don't want to know anything. If it's good I don't want to hear it; if it's bad I don't want to hear it. The only thing either thing can do is distract me. I like to stay focused
We have to support our own films. If we don't, how can we expect others to support them?
Sometimes we just need a firm kick in the pants. An unsmiling expectation that if we mean all these wonderful things we talk about and sing about, then let’s see something to prove it.
There is a place in God's sun for the youth "farthest down" who has the vision, the determination, and the courage to reach it.
The one piece of advice I can give you is, do what turns you on. Do something that if you had all the money in the world, you’d still be doing it. You’ve got to have a reason to jump out of bed in the morning.
I give 98 percent of my mental energy to Chess Others give only 2 percent
Nothing is as important as passion. No matter what you want to do with your life, be passionate. The world doesn’t need any more gray. On the other hand, we can’t get enough color. Mediocrity is nobody’s goal and perfection shouldn’t be either. We’ll never be perfect. But remember these three P’s: Passion + Persistence = Possibility.
You need never be discouraged or afraid. The way through difficulties has always been prepared for you, and you will find it if you exercise faith.
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