---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Freedom was a community laboring for…"
description: "\"“Freedom was a community laboring for something lovely and rare. Mingo”\" — Colson Whitehead"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/colson-whitehead-1042_community_freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-som_3063116.png"
---

#  Freedom was a community laboring for something lovely and…

![“Freedom was a community laboring for something lovely and rare. Mingo” quote by Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/colson-whitehead-1042_community_freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-som_3063116.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/colson-whitehead-1042_community_freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-som_3063116.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/colson-whitehead-1042_community_freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-som_3063116.png)

> ““Freedom was a community laboring for something lovely and rare. Mingo””

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Freedom is a collective effort toward something beautiful and rare, embodied by the character Mingo.

**In simple terms:** Freedom requires community work for rare beauty.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate shared purpose for rare goals.

Themes

freedom community beauty rarity

Mood

hopeful inspirational

Type

philosophical motivational

When to use this quote

- social movements
- grassroots organizing
- artistic collaborations
- civic projects

Key Concepts

collective action idealism

Questions to Reflect On

- What does “lovely and rare” mean to you?
- How can communities sustain such aspirations?

A Different Perspective

Idealistic visions may overlook practical obstacles.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/) [Community Laboring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community-laboring-5146251/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedom Community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-community-3092119/) [Laboring Lovely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laboring-lovely-5146252/) [Rare Mingo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rare-mingo-5146250/)

## Related quotes

> [The freedom of affluence opposes and contradicts the freedom of community life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/the-freedom-of-affluence-opposes-and-contradicts-the-freedom-of/)

[Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/)

> [“Our present idea of freedom is only the freedom to do as we please: to sell ourselves for a high salary, a home in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/our-present-idea-of-freedom-is-only-the-freedom-to-do-as-we-please-to/)

[Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/)

> [Freedom or community, community or freedom. One must decide the way one wants to live. I chose community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-groff/freedom-or-community-community-or-freedom-one-must-decide-the-way-one/)

[Lauren Groff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-groff/)

> [All my life I've been involved with racial politics. I was a Freedom Rider in the South. I was the author of books on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hayden/all-my-life-i-ve-been-involved-with-racial-politics-i-was-a-freedom/)

[Tom Hayden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hayden/)

> [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/)

[Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/)

> [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/)

[Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/)

> [It rolls off my back. Ridicule doesn't mean anything - even from people you're supposed to wear knee pads around, like the scientific community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-schultz/it-rolls-off-my-back-ridicule-doesn-t-mean-anything-even-from-people/)

[Dwight Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-schultz/)

> [I have to feel the audience. I enjoy that feeling of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gahan/i-have-to-feel-the-audience-i-enjoy-that-feeling-of-community/)

[Dave Gahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gahan/)

> [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/)

[Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/)

> [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/)

[Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/)

> [Hackney gets a bit of a bad rap, but it's the only place I've ever lived that felt like a community. I know my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-horgan/hackney-gets-a-bit-of-a-bad-rap-but-it-s-the-only-place-i-ve-ever/)

[Sharon Horgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-horgan/)

> [The strains and stresses suffered by the individual in society are grounded in the normal functioning of that society (and of the individual!) rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-marcuse/the-strains-and-stresses-suffered-by-the-individual-in-society-are/)

[Herbert Marcuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-marcuse/)

> [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/)

[Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/)

> [But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-sarabhai/but-we-are-convinced-that-if-we-are-to-play-a-meaningful-role/)

[Vikram Sarabhai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-sarabhai/)

> [Race is the idea that a human being is more superior than another human being, race in society grants illusional rights to mistreat each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/race-is-the-idea-that-a-human-being-is-more-superior-than-another/)

[Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/)

## More by Colson Whitehead

> [I'd never been much of an athlete, due to a physical condition I'd had since birth (unathleticism). Perhaps if there were a sport centered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/i-d-never-been-much-of-an-athlete-due-to-a-physical-condition-i-d-had/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [I want to keep growing as a writer. I find myself doing unexpected projects and sort of challenging my idea of where I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/i-want-to-keep-growing-as-a-writer-i-find-myself-doing-unexpected/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [“Every Tuesday, James Fulton (and later, Orville Lever) stood in the downstairs drawing room and lectured on the intricacies of his science. Lectured on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/every-tuesday-james-fulton-and-later-orville-lever-stood-in-the/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [I started writing in the '90s, so I was free to just have an eccentric career and not conform to some idea of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/i-started-writing-in-the-90s-so-i-was-free-to-just-have-an-eccentric/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [“Is this the truth of our historic encounter?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/is-this-the-truth-of-our-historic-encounter/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [“The Great War had always been between the white and the black. It always would be. Cora”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/the-great-war-had-always-been-between-the-white-and-the-black-it/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [“The worst sort of scoundrels took up the chase. Drunkards, incorrigibles, poor whites who didn’t even own shoes delighted in this opportunity to scourge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/the-worst-sort-of-scoundrels-took-up-the-chase-drunkards/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [Don’t go searching for a subject, let your subject find you. You can’t rush inspiration. … Once your subject finds you, it’s like falling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/don-t-go-searching-for-a-subject-let-your-subject-find-you-you-can-t/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [“its terms? Homer watched her as she dressed, like a valet who had waited on her since the cradle. “I’m caught,” Cora said. “You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/its-terms-homer-watched-her-as-she-dressed-like-a-valet-who-had/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [These days I find myself wanting to avoid being pigeon-holed, ghettoized, held in a different category than other authors. And when people ask me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/these-days-i-find-myself-wanting-to-avoid-being-pigeon-holed/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [Part of any book is establishing the rules at the end of the world. My first book, 'The Intuitionist,' takes place in an alternative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/part-of-any-book-is-establishing-the-rules-at-the-end-of-the-world-my/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [There's always an attack on the sophomore novel from some quarters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/there-s-always-an-attack-on-the-sophomore-novel-from-some-quarters/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [“All he felt now was envy. These people had expectations. Of the world, of the future, it didn't matter--expectation was such an innovative concept…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/all-he-felt-now-was-envy-these-people-had-expectations-of-the-world/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [Growing up as a product of the black civil-rights movement, I had a lot of different models for black weirdness, whether it's Richard Pryor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/growing-up-as-a-product-of-the-black-civil-rights-movement-i-had-a/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

> [Schools don't teach American history that well, especially a lot of black American history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/schools-don-t-teach-american-history-that-well-especially-a-lot-of/)

[Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

[Explore all 302 Colson Whitehead quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/)

## More Community quotes

> [Race is the idea that a human being is more superior than another human being, race in society grants illusional rights to mistreat each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/race-is-the-idea-that-a-human-being-is-more-superior-than-another/)

[Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/)

> [But we are convinced that if we are to play a meaningful role nationally, and in the community of nations, we must be second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-sarabhai/but-we-are-convinced-that-if-we-are-to-play-a-meaningful-role/)

[Vikram Sarabhai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-sarabhai/)

> [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/)

[Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/)

> [The strains and stresses suffered by the individual in society are grounded in the normal functioning of that society (and of the individual!) rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-marcuse/the-strains-and-stresses-suffered-by-the-individual-in-society-are/)

[Herbert Marcuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-marcuse/)

> [Hackney gets a bit of a bad rap, but it's the only place I've ever lived that felt like a community. I know my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-horgan/hackney-gets-a-bit-of-a-bad-rap-but-it-s-the-only-place-i-ve-ever/)

[Sharon Horgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-horgan/)

> [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/)

[Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/)

> [We're at a point in history were we have to become a part of the neighborhood of inhabited planets, like a neighborhood of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-mitchell/we-re-at-a-point-in-history-were-we-have-to-become-a-part-of-the/)

[Edgar Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-mitchell/)

> [I have to feel the audience. I enjoy that feeling of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-gahan/i-have-to-feel-the-audience-i-enjoy-that-feeling-of-community/)

[Dave Gahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-gahan/)

> [It rolls off my back. Ridicule doesn't mean anything - even from people you're supposed to wear knee pads around, like the scientific community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-schultz/it-rolls-off-my-back-ridicule-doesn-t-mean-anything-even-from-people/)

[Dwight Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-schultz/)

> [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/)

[Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/)

> [I think that most of us, anyway, read these stories that we know are not "true" because we're hungry for another kind of truth:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/i-think-that-most-of-us-anyway-read-these-stories-that-we-know-are/)

[Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/)

> [Human life consists of doing certain things ... to take part in the life of the community; to be able to talk about subjects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/human-life-consists-of-doing-certain-things-to-take-part-in-the-life/)

[Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/)

> [Parents who are stressed or disturbed will have more difficulty in meeting their children's needs. Parents who have little support--from friends, relatives, neighbors, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-kamerman/parents-who-are-stressed-or-disturbed-will-have-more-difficulty-in/)

[Sheila Kamerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-kamerman/)

> [I think what was special about 'Music by Prudence' was the classic story of the title subject's life path - from being an outcast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-think-what-was-special-about-music-by-prudence-was-the-classic/)

[Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/)

> [Perhaps the greatest and least visible form of impoverishment caused by the Corporate State is the destruction of community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-reich/perhaps-the-greatest-and-least-visible-form-of-impoverishment-caused/)

[Charles A. Reich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-a-reich/)

[Browse all 13,840 Community quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/community/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Freedom was a community laboring for something lovely and rare. Mingo”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Colson Whitehead"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-something-lovely-and-rare-mingo/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Community"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-something-lovely-and-rare-mingo/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/colson-whitehead-1042_community_freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-som_3063116.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/colson-whitehead-1042_community_freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-som_3063116.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4f0/colson-whitehead-1042_community_freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-som_3063116.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Freedom was a community laboring for something lovely and rare. Mingo” — Colson Whitehead",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Colson Whitehead",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Freedom was a community laboring for...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-something-lovely-and-rare-mingo/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/freedom-was-a-community-laboring-for-something-lovely-and-rare-mingo/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
