--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In some ways I feel sorry for racists and…" description: "\"In some ways I feel sorry for racists and for religious fanatics, because they so much miss the point of being human, and deserve a sort of pity. But t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6aa/christopher-hitchens-117_being-human_in-some-ways-i-feel-sorry-for-racists-an_2253474.jpg" --- # In some ways I feel sorry for racists and for religious… ![“In some ways I feel sorry for racists and for religious fanatics, because they so much miss the point of being human, and deserve a sort of pity. But then I harden my heart, and decide to hate them all the more, because of the misery they inflict and because of the contemptible excuses they…” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6aa/christopher-hitchens-117_being-human_in-some-ways-i-feel-sorry-for-racists-an_2253474.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6aa/christopher-hitchens-117_being-human_in-some-ways-i-feel-sorry-for-racists-an_2253474.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6aa/christopher-hitchens-117_being-human_in-some-ways-i-feel-sorry-for-racists-an_2253474.jpg) > “In some ways I feel sorry for racists and for religious fanatics, because they so much miss the point of being human, and deserve a sort of pity. But then I harden my heart, and decide to hate them all the more, because of the misery they inflict and because of the contemptible excuses they advance for doing so.” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## 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 feels pity for those who lack humanity but also justifies hatred because of the harm they cause. **In simple terms:** Pity for the ignorant, hatred for their damage. Key Takeaway Recognize harm, but avoid escalating hatred. Themes humanity hate misery pity extremism Mood conflicted critical Type philosophical controversial When to use this quote - political activism - public discourse - personal reflection Key Concepts moral philosophy psychology social critique Questions to Reflect On - Can pity coexist with condemnation? - What alternatives to hatred exist? A Different Perspective Hatred can perpetuate cycles of violence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Being human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-human/) [Fanatics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fanatics/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Misery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misery/) [Pity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pity/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Racist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racist/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Religious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious/) [Religious fanatics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religious-fanatics/) ## Related quotes > [You don't have to be Sigmund Freud to surmise that war has a perverse appeal for the human race, nor is the attraction limited…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-willis/you-don-t-have-to-be-sigmund-freud-to-surmise-that-war-has-a-perverse/) [Ellen Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-willis/) > [That's because international Islamic religious fanatics have the same goal as the Axis fascists - the destruction of our way of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hackworth/that-s-because-international-islamic-religious-fanatics-have-the-same/) [David Hackworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hackworth/) > [Democratic societies can no longer give religious fanatics a free hand to abuse and murder non believers. Such action betrays contempt for the basic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/armstrong-williams/democratic-societies-can-no-longer-give-religious-fanatics-a-free/) [Armstrong Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/armstrong-williams/) > [Ashcroft went on to say that our way of life is being threatened by a group of radical religious fanatics who are armed and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/ashcroft-went-on-to-say-that-our-way-of-life-is-being-threatened-by-a/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Then there are the fanatical atheists whose intolerance is of the same kind as the intolerance of the religious fanatics and comes from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/then-there-are-the-fanatical-atheists-whose-intolerance-is-of-the/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Ladies, just know that when you grow your hair too long, you got about two inches difference between really hot, sexy supermodel - religious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iliza-shlesinger/ladies-just-know-that-when-you-grow-your-hair-too-long-you-got-about/) [Iliza Shlesinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iliza-shlesinger/) > [Feel eternity around you. Not as an idea, not as a nice intellectualization, but to really feel it; not to be some religious fanatic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/feel-eternity-around-you-not-as-an-idea-not-as-a-nice/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I do fear male religious fanatics and accountants and retirement plans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-lamy/i-do-fear-male-religious-fanatics-and-accountants-and-retirement-plans/) [Michele Lamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-lamy/) > [ George Bush Junior \[George W Bush\] was a religious fanatic, and Tony Blair wasn't far behind in a way. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-hawke/george-bush-junior-george-w-bush-was-a-religious-fanatic-and-tony/) [Bob Hawke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-hawke/) > [A religious fanatic is somebody who knows Jesus Christ better than you do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-kaat/a-religious-fanatic-is-somebody-who-knows-jesus-christ-better-than/) [Jim Kaat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-kaat/) > [The principal sponsors of the terrorists are not religious fanatics. 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And they showered rose petals on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shahbaz-bhatti/however-after-the-assassination-of-salman-taseer-the-killer-of-salman/) [Shahbaz Bhatti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shahbaz-bhatti/) > [If you go looking for loonies and religious fanatics and dropouts and freaks, I dare say you'll find it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/if-you-go-looking-for-loonies-and-religious-fanatics-and-dropouts-and/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [Very few minds are strictly normal, and all religious fanatics are marked with abnormalities of various sorts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/very-few-minds-are-strictly-normal-and-all-religious-fanatics-are/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [I'm amazed at the adolescent nature of some of the religious fanatics in our government. And they're full of double standards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dar-williams/i-m-amazed-at-the-adolescent-nature-of-some-of-the-religious-fanatics/) [Dar Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dar-williams/) ## More by Christopher Hitchens > [“The spirit of our accurate and exact philosophy is outraged by conclusions that contradict each other so glaringly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-spirit-of-our-accurate-and-exact-philosophy-is-outraged-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Many governments employ torture but this was the first time that the element of Saturnalia and pornography in the process had been made so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/many-governments-employ-torture-but-this-was-the-first-time-that-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. 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