--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Emmett White became a firm, even…" description: "\"“Emmett White became a firm, even unyielding, sheriff. Still, he showed remarkable consideration toward the people in his custody and insisted on makin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/706/david-grann-2569_black-or-white_emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyieldi_217494.jpg" --- # Emmett White became a firm, even unyielding, sheriff… ![“Emmett White became a firm, even unyielding, sheriff. Still, he showed remarkable consideration toward the people in his custody and insisted on making arrests without brandishing his six-shooter. He did not philosophize about the law or his responsibilities, but Tom noticed that he always…” quote by David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/706/david-grann-2569_black-or-white_emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyieldi_217494.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/706/david-grann-2569_black-or-white_emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyieldi_217494.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/706/david-grann-2569_black-or-white_emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyieldi_217494.jpg) > ““Emmett White became a firm, even unyielding, sheriff. Still, he showed remarkable consideration toward the people in his custody and insisted on making arrests without brandishing his six-shooter. He did not philosophize about the law or his responsibilities, but Tom noticed that he always maintained the same manner, no matter whether the prisoners were black or white or Mexican. At the time, extrajudicial lynchings, particularly of blacks in the South, were one of the most egregious failures of the American legal system. Whenever Emmett heard that locals were planning to throw a “necktie party,” he would rush out to try to stop it. “If a mob attempts to take the negro” from the sheriff, a reporter noted in one case, “there will be trouble.” Emmett refused to put young, nonviolent prisoners in the jail alongside older, more dangerous convicts, and because there was no other place for them, he let them stay in his own house, living with his children. One girl remained with them for weeks on end. Tom never knew why she was in jail, and his father never discussed it.”” [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A lawman can be firm yet compassionate, protecting all under his charge despite societal injustice. **In simple terms:** A sheriff can be strict and kind. Key Takeaway Balance authority with empathy. Themes justice leadership racial equality Mood serious thoughtful Type philosophical historical When to use this quote - community policing - prison reform - civil rights advocacy - conflict mediation Key Concepts ethical law enforcement human dignity Questions to Reflect On - How would you act when faced with mob pressure? - What policies can protect vulnerable prisoners? A Different Perspective Balancing firmness and compassion is challenging in hostile environments. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black or white](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-or-white/) [Legal system](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/legal-system/) ## Related quotes > [I see the main problem of my life, and indeed anybody's life, as the balancing of competitive freedoms ... a sense of mutual obligations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-west/i-see-the-main-problem-of-my-life-and-indeed-anybody-s-life-as-the/) [Rebecca West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-west/) > [ “I believe \[...\] that while all human life is sacred there’s nothing wrong with the death penalty if you can trust the legal system… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-believe-that-while-all-human-life-is-sacred-there-s-nothing-wrong/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There have been some gains made in terms of more equality for women in the workplace and in the way the legal system deals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-chapman/there-have-been-some-gains-made-in-terms-of-more-equality-for-women/) [Tracy Chapman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-chapman/) > [Torture is such a slippery slope; as soon as you allow a society or any legal system to do that, almost instantly you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iain-banks/torture-is-such-a-slippery-slope-as-soon-as-you-allow-a-society-or/) [Iain Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iain-banks/) > [None of us like the concept of law because none of us like the restraints it puts on us. But when we understand that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/none-of-us-like-the-concept-of-law-because-none-of-us-like-the/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [“And that’s the terrible myth of organized society. That everything that’s done through the established system is legal. And that word has a powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-m-kunstler/and-that-s-the-terrible-myth-of-organized-society-that-everything/) William M. Kunstler > [“The fundamental basis by which the court’s decision might be made is, in itself, imperfect and subject to contradictions. There is very little consideration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashim-shanker/the-fundamental-basis-by-which-the-court-s-decision-might-be-made-is/) [Ashim Shanker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashim-shanker/) > [A primary motivation for introducing no-fault divorce was, in fact, to reduce perjury in the legal system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-coontz/a-primary-motivation-for-introducing-no-fault-divorce-was-in-fact-to/) [Stephanie Coontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-coontz/) > [“Police not enforcing laws results in a high crime rate that is formally reported as a low crime rate in police statistics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/police-not-enforcing-laws-results-in-a-high-crime-rate-that-is/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [Justice Lewis Powell spoke for all of us when he said: Equal justice under law is perhaps the most inspiring idea of our society.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-kennedy/justice-lewis-powell-spoke-for-all-of-us-when-he-said-equal-justice/) [Edward Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-kennedy/) > [I think the reality is that copyright law has for a very long time been a tiny little part of American jurisprudence, far removed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-lessig/i-think-the-reality-is-that-copyright-law-has-for-a-very-long-time/) [Lawrence Lessig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-lessig/) > [Our legal system, including the police, is anti-Dalit and anti-poor. The death penalty laws' wrathful majesty, in blood-shot equality, deals the fatal blow on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/v-r-krishna-iyer/our-legal-system-including-the-police-is-anti-dalit-and-anti-poor-the/) V. R. Krishna Iyer > [“They have secret weapons that break the heart of innocents, elevate stress levels, shoot down to make it look guilt. They can burn from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-karvouni/they-have-secret-weapons-that-break-the-heart-of-innocents-elevate/) [Maria Karvouni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-karvouni/) > [The legal system in Afghanistan is very immature and porous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsey-graham/the-legal-system-in-afghanistan-is-very-immature-and-porous/) [Lindsey Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsey-graham/) > [The right to a trial is a core principle of the American legal system. Depriving Americans of these essential liberties undermines the Constitution while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-garamendi/the-right-to-a-trial-is-a-core-principle-of-the-american-legal-system/) [John Garamendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-garamendi/) ## More by David Grann > [“To believe that the Osages survived intact from their ordeal is a delusion of the mind. What has been possible to salvage has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/to-believe-that-the-osages-survived-intact-from-their-ordeal-is-a/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Over the next two decades, the Osage were forced to cede nearly a hundred million acres of their ancestral land, ultimately finding refuge in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/over-the-next-two-decades-the-osage-were-forced-to-cede-nearly-a/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Only in the mid-nineteenth century, after the growth of industrial cities and a rash of urban riots—after dread of the so-called dangerous classes surpassed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/only-in-the-mid-nineteenth-century-after-the-growth-of-industrial/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [I look for stories everywhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/i-look-for-stories-everywhere/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [My mother doesn't need much sleep. At any hour of the night, you'd wake up, and she'd be reading. She'd read five, six books…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/my-mother-doesn-t-need-much-sleep-at-any-hour-of-the-night-you-d-wake/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [The way we live history is not the way historians tell history. Our lives are messy and chaotic and bewildering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/the-way-we-live-history-is-not-the-way-historians-tell-history-our/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Fawcett, who had always found refuge in the natural world, no longer recognized the wilderness of bombed-out villages, denuded trees, craters, and sunbaked skeletons.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/fawcett-who-had-always-found-refuge-in-the-natural-world-no-longer/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Does God think that, because it is raining, I am not going to destroy the world? - Lope de Aguirre after going mad in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/does-god-think-that-because-it-is-raining-i-am-not-going-to-destroy/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“In 1804, a delegation of Osage chiefs met with Jefferson at the White House. He told the navy secretary that the Osage, whose warriors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/in-1804-a-delegation-of-osage-chiefs-met-with-jefferson-at-the-white/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [A lot of the stuff I tweet is out of childlike curiosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/a-lot-of-the-stuff-i-tweet-is-out-of-childlike-curiosity/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“Instead, the terrain looked like Nebraska—perpetual plains that faded into the horizon. When I asked Taukane where the forest was, he said, simply, “Gone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/instead-the-terrain-looked-like-nebraska-perpetual-plains-that-faded/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [I covered Congress, and everyone always wanted me to be a political reporter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/i-covered-congress-and-everyone-always-wanted-me-to-be-a-political/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [For a while, when I got out of college, I tried to write fiction. I'd grown up more around novelists, and my initial attraction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/for-a-while-when-i-got-out-of-college-i-tried-to-write-fiction-i-d/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [One of the nice things about 'The New Yorker' is they let you write stories that sometimes end up almost half a book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/one-of-the-nice-things-about-the-new-yorker-is-they-let-you-write/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) > [“the amount of oil money had surpassed the total value of all the Old West gold rushes combined, and this fortune had drawn every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/the-amount-of-oil-money-had-surpassed-the-total-value-of-all-the-old/) [David Grann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) [Explore all 160 David Grann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/) ## More Black or white quotes > [When you go to a club it's not about being black or white or heavy or thick. I'm shaking my ass because I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley-cyrus/when-you-go-to-a-club-it-s-not-about-being-black-or-white-or-heavy-or/) [Miley Cyrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley-cyrus/) > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Raves when it was safe to be free & wave your hands in the air, like you didn't even care! Not scared to break…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/progrezza/raves-when-it-was-safe-to-be-free-wave-your-hands-in-the-air-like-you/) [Progrezza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/progrezza/) > [So many assume the truth is either black or white... It's all evolution or it's totally creation, for example. Reality creates consciousness; consciousness creates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-shepherd/so-many-assume-the-truth-is-either-black-or-white-it-s-all-evolution/) [Peter Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-shepherd/) > [I don't think of people as out-and-out black or white.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tabu/i-don-t-think-of-people-as-out-and-out-black-or-white/) [Tabu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tabu/) > [Everybody has a little bit of the sun and moon in them. Everybody has a little bit of man, woman, and animal in them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/everybody-has-a-little-bit-of-the-sun-and-moon-in-them-everybody-has/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [“It's easy to say you will do what's right and shun what's wrong, but when you get close enough to any given situation, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/it-s-easy-to-say-you-will-do-what-s-right-and-shun-what-s-wrong-but/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Perhaps we should worry less about judging people for being Mormon or Baptist or Muslim or gay or straight or black or white or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charity-sunshine-tillemann-dick/perhaps-we-should-worry-less-about-judging-people-for-being-mormon-or/) [Charity Sunshine Tillemann-Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charity-sunshine-tillemann-dick/) > [As blacks, we need not be afraid that encouraging moraldevelopment, a conscience and guilt will prevent social action. Black children without the ability to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-p-comer-2/as-blacks-we-need-not-be-afraid-that-encouraging-moraldevelopment-a/) James P Comer > [“Bloody stars, if this was what it was going to be like having both halves of herself merged into one, she wasn't so certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kady-cross/bloody-stars-if-this-was-what-it-was-going-to-be-like-having-both/) [Kady Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kady-cross/) > [“This world is like a rainbow or flower garden. Each nation donate different colors . Tribe, religion, race, language, traditions and different cultures,etc. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andry-lavigne/this-world-is-like-a-rainbow-or-flower-garden-each-nation-donate/) [Andry lavigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andry-lavigne/) > [It aint about black or white, coz we all human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/2pac/it-aint-about-black-or-white-coz-we-all-human/) [2pac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/2pac/) > [No female - young, old, black or white - could ever play the knight-on-charger with meager experience. If she presented herself as the human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/froma-harrop/no-female-young-old-black-or-white-could-ever-play-the-knight-on/) Froma Harrop > [There was no black or white. Someone who had been good her entire life could, in fact, do something evil. People were just as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/there-was-no-black-or-white-someone-who-had-been-good-her-entire-life/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [In the music industry it's just you're either Black or white, and this is the box you get put in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/india-arie-2/in-the-music-industry-it-s-just-you-re-either-black-or-white-and-this/) [India.Arie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/india-arie-2/) [Browse all 246 Black or white quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-or-white/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Emmett White became a firm, even unyielding, sheriff. Still, he showed remarkable consideration toward the people in his custody and insisted on making arrests without brandishing his six-shooter. He did not philosophize about the law or his responsibilities, but Tom noticed that he always maintained the same manner, no matter whether the prisoners were black or white or Mexican. At the time, extrajudicial lynchings, particularly of blacks in the South, were one of the most egregious failures of the American legal system. Whenever Emmett heard that locals were planning to throw a “necktie party,” he would rush out to try to stop it. “If a mob attempts to take the negro” from the sheriff, a reporter noted in one case, “there will be trouble.” Emmett refused to put young, nonviolent prisoners in the jail alongside older, more dangerous convicts, and because there was no other place for them, he let them stay in his own house, living with his children. One girl remained with them for weeks on end. Tom never knew why she was in jail, and his father never discussed it.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Grann" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyielding-sheriff-still-he-showed/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Black or white" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyielding-sheriff-still-he-showed/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/706/david-grann-2569_black-or-white_emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyieldi_217494.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/706/david-grann-2569_black-or-white_emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyieldi_217494.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/706/david-grann-2569_black-or-white_emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyieldi_217494.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Emmett White became a firm, even unyielding, sheriff. Still, he showed remarkable consideration toward the…” — David Grann", "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": "David Grann", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-grann/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Emmett White became a firm, even...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyielding-sheriff-still-he-showed/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-grann/emmett-white-became-a-firm-even-unyielding-sheriff-still-he-showed/#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 } } ] } ```