Black Quote by Bell Hooks
“I grew up in the midst of poverty but every black kid that I knew could read and write. We have to talk about the fact that we cannot educate for critical consciousness if we have a group of people who cannot access Fanon, Cabral, or Audre Lorde because they can’t read or write. How did Malcolm X radicalize his consciousness? He did it through books. If you deprive working-class and poor black people of access to reading and writing, you are making them that much farther removed from being a class that can engage in revolutionary resistance.”
About This Quote
Source Book: Teaching to Transgress, 1994
Education must empower marginalized voices through literacy and critical thought.
In simple terms: Education should enable critical consciousness.
Key Takeaway
Promote reading and writing for empowerment.
Themes
education
justice
empowerment
Mood
urgent
reflective
Type
academic
activist
When to use this quote
- schools
- community centers
- prison education programs
- online courses
Key Concepts
critical consciousness
literacy
revolution
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we expand literacy in underserved communities?
- What role do books play in radicalizing consciousness?
A Different Perspective
Systemic barriers limit access to resources.
![“I believe that if we could see the chapters that are missing from the book [The Autobiography of Malcolm X], we would gain an understanding as to why perhaps - perhaps - the F.B.I., the C.I.A., the New York Police Department and others in law enforcement greatly feared what Malcolm X was about…” quote by Manning Marable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/690/manning-marable-9023_ahead-of-time_i-believe-that-if-we-could-see-the-chapt_534619.jpg)
