--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: And remember that it’s not about you…" description: "\"“And remember that it’s not about you. American Blacks are not telling you that you are to blame. They are just telling you what is. If you don’t under..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/119/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie-505_ask-questions_and-remember-that-it-s-not-about-you-ame_827055.png" --- # And remember that it’s not about you. American Blacks are… ![“And remember that it’s not about you. American Blacks are not telling you that you are to blame. They are just telling you what is. If you don’t understand, ask questions. If you’re uncomfortable about asking questions, say you are uncomfortable about asking questions and then ask anyway. It’s…” quote by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/119/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie-505_ask-questions_and-remember-that-it-s-not-about-you-ame_827055.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/119/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie-505_ask-questions_and-remember-that-it-s-not-about-you-ame_827055.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/119/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie-505_ask-questions_and-remember-that-it-s-not-about-you-ame_827055.png) > ““And remember that it’s not about you. American Blacks are not telling you that you are to blame. They are just telling you what is. If you don’t understand, ask questions. If you’re uncomfortable about asking questions, say you are uncomfortable about asking questions and then ask anyway. It’s easy to tell when a question is coming from a good place. Then listen some more. Sometimes people just want to feel heard. Here’s to possibilities of friendship and connection and understanding.”” [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote urges humility, active listening, and asking uncomfortable questions to foster understanding and connection across differences. **In simple terms:** Listen, ask, and stay humble to connect with others. Key Takeaway Seek honest dialogue, even when uneasy. Themes empathy communication social justice friendship Mood thoughtful encouraging reflective Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - community meetings - workplace diversity training - personal relationships - online discussions Key Concepts active listening humility cultural awareness Questions to Reflect On - How can you ask difficult questions without alienating others? - What steps help you stay open when feeling uncomfortable? A Different Perspective May be perceived as dismissing personal responsibility or oversimplifying complex issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) ## Related quotes > [If you don't understand, ask questions. If you're uncomfortable about asking questions, say you are uncomfortable about asking questions and then ask anyway. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/if-you-don-t-understand-ask-questions-if-you-re-uncomfortable-about/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [“Try listening, maybe. Hear what is being said. And remember that it’s not about you. 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It is a type of music invented by \[American\] Blacks to please their primitive tendencies and desire… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sayyid-qutb/jazz-is-the-favorite-music-of-america-it-is-a-type-of-music-invented/) [Sayyid Qutb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sayyid-qutb/) > [Preferential affirmative action patronizes American blacks, women, and others by presuming that they cannot succeed on their own. Preferential affirmative action does not advance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-keyes/preferential-affirmative-action-patronizes-american-blacks-women-and/) [Alan Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-keyes/) > [We blacks were the first people embracing Obama, long before the people at expensive fundraisers were supporting him. We gave him his first love,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-jackson/we-blacks-were-the-first-people-embracing-obama-long-before-the/) [Jesse Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-jackson/) > [No, Islam did not lift American blacks out of poverty; capitalism did that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-tancredo/no-islam-did-not-lift-american-blacks-out-of-poverty-capitalism-did/) [Tom Tancredo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-tancredo/) > [My father kept his distance from working-class American blacks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/constance-baker-motley/my-father-kept-his-distance-from-working-class-american-blacks/) [Constance Baker Motley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/constance-baker-motley/) > [“People were flattered to be asked about themselves and if she said nothing after they spoke, it made them say more. 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Perhaps it was so that we would not ask the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/we-did-that-often-asking-each-other-questions-whose-answers-we-2/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) ## More by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie > [“What I’ve noticed being here is that many English people are in awe of America but also deeply resent it,” Obinze added. “Perfectly true,”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/what-i-ve-noticed-being-here-is-that-many-english-people-are-in-awe/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [If you followed the media you'd think that everybody in Africa was starving to death, and that's not the case; so it's important to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/if-you-followed-the-media-you-d-think-that-everybody-in-africa-was/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [“Because human beings lived then in a world in which physical strength was the most important attribute for survival; the physically stronger person was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/because-human-beings-lived-then-in-a-world-in-which-physical-strength/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [To return to the books of my childhood is to yield to the strain of nostalgia that is curious about the self I once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/to-return-to-the-books-of-my-childhood-is-to-yield-to-the-strain-of/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [I think white women need to wake up and say, 'Not all women are white,' three times in front of the mirror.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/i-think-white-women-need-to-wake-up-and-say-not-all-women-are-white/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [We teach girls that they cannot be sexual beings in the way that boys are. 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I really trust the reader…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-krauss/i-feel-really-strongly-about-not-wanting-to-overly-guide-the-reader/) [Nicole Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-krauss/) > [For the most part, if somebody approaches me and says, 'I'd like to interview you,' who am I to say no, when I spend…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-roach/for-the-most-part-if-somebody-approaches-me-and-says-i-d-like-to/) [Mary Roach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-roach/) > [...all the answers are but waiting for us while we, poor fools, ask questions and wait for the secrets of God to open themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-asad/all-the-answers-are-but-waiting-for-us-while-we-poor-fools-ask/) [Muhammad Asad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-asad/) > [“It’s funny how the devout pretend like they want people to ask questions, but really they only want you to ask the questions that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tal-m-klein/it-s-funny-how-the-devout-pretend-like-they-want-people-to-ask/) [Tal M. 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You're going to take over the world, and change…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophia-amoruso/you-ask-questions-you-take-your-life-seriously-but-you-don-t-take/) [Sophia Amoruso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophia-amoruso/) > [The most subversive people are those who ask questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jostein-gaarder/the-most-subversive-people-are-those-who-ask-questions/) [Jostein Gaarder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jostein-gaarder/) > [Rules for texting a girl: 1. Don't take 40 minutes to reply. 2. Use good grammar. 3. Ask Questions. 4. Use the :) face.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rules-for-texting-a-girl-1-don-t-take-40-minutes-to-reply-2-use-good/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) Browse all 828 Ask questions quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“And remember that it’s not about you. American Blacks are not telling you that you are to blame. 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