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
Let's face it - think of Africa, and the first images that come to mind are of war, poverty, famine and flies. How many of us really know anything at all about the truly great ancient African civilizations, which in their day, were just as splendid and glorious as any on the face of the earth?
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote challenges the common negative stereotypes about Africa by highlighting its rich ancient civilizations.
Henry Louis Gates emphasizes that the prevalent images of Africa are often limited to war and poverty, overshadowing the continent's remarkable history and cultural achievements. By invoking the legacy of ancient African civilizations, he calls for a broader understanding and appreciation of Africa's past, suggesting that it was as grand and significant as any other civilization known in history.
Themes
AfricaCivilizationsHistoryCultureUnderstanding
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about cultural representation, you might say this quote to emphasize the need for a more balanced view of Africa.
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.
Henry Louis GatesRead
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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