--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think, in the United States, we talk…" description: "\"I think, in the United States, we talk about race as a black and white issue... We're generally talking about it as if it's a binary equation whereas, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/celeste-ng-1718_binary_i-think-in-the-united-states-we-talk-abo_803751.jpg" --- # I think, in the United States, we talk about race as a… ![“I think, in the United States, we talk about race as a black and white issue... We're generally talking about it as if it's a binary equation whereas, in fact, there's more than two races and, in fact, those races blend together. There are a lot of different ways that people identify.” quote by Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/celeste-ng-1718_binary_i-think-in-the-united-states-we-talk-abo_803751.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/celeste-ng-1718_binary_i-think-in-the-united-states-we-talk-abo_803751.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/34a/celeste-ng-1718_binary_i-think-in-the-united-states-we-talk-abo_803751.jpg) > “I think, in the United States, we talk about race as a black and white issue... We're generally talking about it as if it's a binary equation whereas, in fact, there's more than two races and, in fact, those races blend together. There are a lot of different ways that people identify.” [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author critiques the simplistic view of race as a binary concept, emphasizing that racial identity is complex, fluid, and often blends multiple backgrounds. **In simple terms:** Race is not just black or white; it’s a mix of many identities. Key Takeaway Recognize and respect the nuanced, overlapping nature of racial identities. Themes race identity complexity Mood thoughtful analytical Type social educational When to use this quote - policy discussions - education curricula - media representation Key Concepts intersectionality social constructs Questions to Reflect On - How does binary thinking about race affect social policy? - In what ways can we better acknowledge mixed identities? A Different Perspective Simplifying race can ignore individual experiences and reinforce stereotypes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Binary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/binary/) [Black and white](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-and-white/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) ## Related quotes > [The races are in fact disappearing, although the process will require thousands of years at present rates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-bentley-glass/the-races-are-in-fact-disappearing-although-the-process-will-require/) [H. Bentley Glass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-bentley-glass/) > [Today, we've got what seems to me to be binary-choice politics: black and white, ones and zeros, either you are with me or against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-e-hoffman/today-we-ve-got-what-seems-to-me-to-be-binary-choice-politics-black/) [David E. Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-e-hoffman/) > [Human beings have a lot of problems identifying themselves with other human beings who don't resemble them exactly. But there's something about drawing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/human-beings-have-a-lot-of-problems-identifying-themselves-with-other/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [I think most people can identify with the hierarchy of the workplace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-baker/i-think-most-people-can-identify-with-the-hierarchy-of-the-workplace/) [Simon Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-baker/) > [People always identify a vehicle on the grille.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henrik-fisker/people-always-identify-a-vehicle-on-the-grille/) [Henrik Fisker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henrik-fisker/) > [It's hard because it doesn't matter what you do, most people still identify me as Undertaker's wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-mccool/it-s-hard-because-it-doesn-t-matter-what-you-do-most-people-still/) [Michelle McCool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-mccool/) > [I'm not a southern lady, I'm from Pennsylvania and we speak sort of correctly there. People identify me that way and they also easily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zelda-rubinstein/i-m-not-a-southern-lady-i-m-from-pennsylvania-and-we-speak-sort-of/) Zelda Rubinstein > [People identify with other people for different reasons, and I personally am really comfortable around lesbians because, in some ways, we view women the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-antonoff/people-identify-with-other-people-for-different-reasons-and-i/) [Jack Antonoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-antonoff/) > [The story of 'Rudy' has almost transcended me. I'm the representation, but there are so many people out there that identify with it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudy-ruettiger/the-story-of-rudy-has-almost-transcended-me-i-m-the-representation/) [Rudy Ruettiger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudy-ruettiger/) > [I believe it's an honor for me wherever I go in and around the country people still identify me and love me so much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-t-usha/i-believe-it-s-an-honor-for-me-wherever-i-go-in-and-around-the/) [P. T. Usha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-t-usha/) > [In any marginalized community, whether people identify themselves or not affects us all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ani-difranco/in-any-marginalized-community-whether-people-identify-themselves-or/) [Ani DiFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ani-difranco/) > [You want people to identify with the person on the screen or in the theater, but you don't want them to identify with you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-morrissey/you-want-people-to-identify-with-the-person-on-the-screen-or-in-the/) [David Morrissey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-morrissey/) > [I am grateful to God for that because people can still identify me with something in Germany.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-jay-okocha/i-am-grateful-to-god-for-that-because-people-can-still-identify-me/) [Jay-Jay Okocha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-jay-okocha/) > [But when this happens to you - and I think other people would identify with this - suddenly, colors are brighter. You see everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-redgrave/but-when-this-happens-to-you-and-i-think-other-people-would-identify/) [Lynn Redgrave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-redgrave/) > [People will identify with a persecuted minority without asking themselves what they are identifying with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mantel/people-will-identify-with-a-persecuted-minority-without-asking/) [Hilary Mantel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mantel/) ## More by Celeste Ng > [When you mention to people growing up in Cleveland they bring up the river catching on fire, or LeBron James leaving, they have these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/when-you-mention-to-people-growing-up-in-cleveland-they-bring-up-the/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [It's so easy, as a writer, to get stuck in your own head, to live in the little worlds you create. To forget that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/it-s-so-easy-as-a-writer-to-get-stuck-in-your-own-head-to-live-in-the/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“All up and down the street the houses looked like any others—but inside them were people who might be happy, or taking refuge, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/all-up-and-down-the-street-the-houses-looked-like-any-others-but/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [No reader wants to sit through the same scene four times in a row, unless they're radically different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/no-reader-wants-to-sit-through-the-same-scene-four-times-in-a-row/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Debut novels are difficult because nobody knows you... they just don't find a huge audience, because that's how the market works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/debut-novels-are-difficult-because-nobody-knows-you-they-just-don-t/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [We have to figure out why we see the world in different ways and then how are we going to adjust so that we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/we-have-to-figure-out-why-we-see-the-world-in-different-ways-and-then/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“I have measured my life with coffee spoons and do I dare to eat a peach?' 'DO I DARE DISTURB THE UNIVERSE?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/i-have-measured-my-life-with-coffee-spoons-and-do-i-dare-to-eat-a/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“No one, she had learned from experience, could stand such silence for long. If you waited long enough, someone would start talking, and more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/no-one-she-had-learned-from-experience-could-stand-such-silence-for/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“Most of the time, everyone deserves more than one chance. We all do things we regret now and then. You just have to carry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/most-of-the-time-everyone-deserves-more-than-one-chance-we-all-do/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“Though she would never quite articulate it this way, resentment began to sheathe concern. ANGER IS FEAR'S BODYGUARD, a poster in the hospital hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/though-she-would-never-quite-articulate-it-this-way-resentment-began/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Spend too much time alone with your own words, and your writing grows anemic, in dire need of a transfusion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/spend-too-much-time-alone-with-your-own-words-and-your-writing-grows/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [“Everyone sees race, Lex," said Moody. "The only difference is who pretends not to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/everyone-sees-race-lex-said-moody-the-only-difference-is-who-pretends/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Writers, most of them, don't have a lot of resources.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/writers-most-of-them-don-t-have-a-lot-of-resources/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Browse Amazon reviews, and you'll see a surprising number of readers who believe one novel can summarize a country, its culture, and its people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/browse-amazon-reviews-and-you-ll-see-a-surprising-number-of-readers/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) > [Short of the dishonest, the illegal, and the cruel, there's only one thing my son could do that would really disappoint me: not liking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/celeste-ng/short-of-the-dishonest-the-illegal-and-the-cruel-there-s-only-one/) [Celeste Ng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) [Explore all 212 Celeste Ng quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/celeste-ng/) ## More Binary quotes > [I don't think there's anything unique about human intellience. All the nuerons in the brain that make up perceptions and emotions operate in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/i-don-t-think-there-s-anything-unique-about-human-intellience-all-the/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [Any sufficiently crisp question can be answered by a single binary digit-0 or 1, yes or no.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/any-sufficiently-crisp-question-can-be-answered-by-a-single-binary/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [“I live in a binary star system, my two suns being my two sons.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corrado-ghinamo/i-live-in-a-binary-star-system-my-two-suns-being-my-two-sons/) Corrado Ghinamo > [The simplest kind of decision is binary: that is, the question can be answered, in principle at least, by either yes or no.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-j-w-barber/the-simplest-kind-of-decision-is-binary-that-is-the-question-can-be/) [E. J. W. Barber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-j-w-barber/) > [Today, we've got what seems to me to be binary-choice politics: black and white, ones and zeros, either you are with me or against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-e-hoffman/today-we-ve-got-what-seems-to-me-to-be-binary-choice-politics-black/) [David E. Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-e-hoffman/) > [ Object-oriented programming aficionados think that everything is an object… this \[isn't\] so. There are things that are objects. Things that have state and change… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-stepanov/object-oriented-programming-aficionados-think-that-everything-is-an/) [Alexander Stepanov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-stepanov/) > [A lot of people still have the idea that drag goes from one end of the gender spectrum to the other end of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sasha-velour/a-lot-of-people-still-have-the-idea-that-drag-goes-from-one-end-of/) [Sasha Velour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sasha-velour/) > [When I first started going out to lesbian clubs, I felt a very binary recreation of hetero culture. There are butches and femmes, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee-rees/when-i-first-started-going-out-to-lesbian-clubs-i-felt-a-very-binary/) [Dee Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee-rees/) > [I'm someone that likes to not think too binary about human qualities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tessa-thompson/i-m-someone-that-likes-to-not-think-too-binary-about-human-qualities/) [Tessa Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tessa-thompson/) > [Coming out as non-binary has honestly been the best thing ever for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-flip/coming-out-as-non-binary-has-honestly-been-the-best-thing-ever-for-me/) [G Flip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-flip/) > [For too long, history has imposed a binary condition on its black citizens: either nameless or renowned, menial or exceptional, passive recipients of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/for-too-long-history-has-imposed-a-binary-condition-on-its-black/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [I've never regretted not making Linux shareware: I really don't like the pay for use binary shareware programs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linus-torvalds/i-ve-never-regretted-not-making-linux-shareware-i-really-don-t-like/) [Linus Torvalds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linus-torvalds/) > [“Belonging is one of the things that makes life bearable, and it can be tough to look at a binary world and choose against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-solomon/belonging-is-one-of-the-things-that-makes-life-bearable-and-it-can-be/) [Andrew Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-solomon/) > ['Crazy Rich Asians' has been compared to 'Black Panther,' but I feel like that's a false equivalency. The idea that there's only this film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonoya-mizuno/crazy-rich-asians-has-been-compared-to-black-panther-but-i-feel-like/) [Sonoya Mizuno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonoya-mizuno/) > [Not all bodies are born in male or female. There is a continuum of bodies and it seems to me that trying to persuade…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-butler/not-all-bodies-are-born-in-male-or-female-there-is-a-continuum-of/) [Judith Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-butler/) [Browse all 135 Binary quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/binary/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think, in the United States, we talk about race as a black and white issue... We're generally talking about it as if it's a binary equation whereas, in fact, there's more than two races and, in fact, those races blend together. 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