Racial bias does exist, and until we can all admit its existence and become introspective as to whether our own personal biases are impacting how we deal with others, there will be no change.
Interpretation
Acknowledging racial bias is essential for personal and societal growth.
This quote emphasizes the importance of recognizing the existence of racial bias, not just in society, but within ourselves as individuals. It calls for introspection and honesty about our own prejudices, suggesting that without this personal acknowledgment and willingness to change, meaningful progress in addressing racial issues cannot occur.
In practice
In a workshop on diversity, this quote can spur discussions about personal biases.
When I was growing up, I felt like I had to qualify it and say I'm British-Pakistani. But now I kind of feel like, in this day in age, this is what British looks like. It looks like me; it looks like Idris Elba, and hopefully through Nasir Khan, people will see that that's what an American can look like as well.
He did not know that the child who had asked for yesterday was now seeking to own tomorrow.
Most English writers are not interested in change but in the social novel. That demands a static backdrop. I'm intensely interested in change - probably as a matter of self-preservation. What the hell is going to happen next?
I hope one day people don't look at women like they're out of their minds when they want to pick up an instrument and play. And I think we're getting a lot closer to that.
In Afghanistan, there is a plan to build democracy; hundreds of thousands of troops are protecting it. There is a plan to rebuild and reconstruct there. But many thousands of Americans die from violence and poverty every year and we don't have a plan for reconstruction at home.
Take the adventure, heed the call, now ere the irrevocable moment passes! 'Tis but a banging of the door behind you, a blithesome step forward, and you are out of your old life and into the new!
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