--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: hierarchy-making was wielded in the…" description: "\"“hierarchy-making was wielded in the service of a political project: enslavement.”\" — Ibram X. Kendi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/ibram-x-kendi-3080_politics_hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-serv_1786108.jpg" --- # hierarchy-making was wielded in the service of a political… ![“hierarchy-making was wielded in the service of a political project: enslavement.” quote by Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/ibram-x-kendi-3080_politics_hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-serv_1786108.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/ibram-x-kendi-3080_politics_hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-serv_1786108.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/ibram-x-kendi-3080_politics_hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-serv_1786108.jpg) > ““hierarchy-making was wielded in the service of a political project: enslavement.”” [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hierarchy is used as a tool to enforce political domination and keep people subjugated. **In simple terms:** Power structures enforce oppression. Key Takeaway Recognize and dismantle oppressive hierarchies. Themes power politics oppression race justice Mood critical determined Type analytical activist When to use this quote - policy analysis - activism - education - community organizing Key Concepts structural racism social control political project Questions to Reflect On - How do you see hierarchy reinforcing oppression in your environment? - What steps can reduce its impact? A Different Perspective Hierarchies can also arise unintentionally, complicating reform. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Enslavement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enslavement/) [Hierarchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hierarchy/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Slavery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slavery/) ## Related quotes > [Europe was initially supposed to be primarily a political project! The EU never would have come about had it been up to experts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuel-macron/europe-was-initially-supposed-to-be-primarily-a-political-project-the/) [Emmanuel Macron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuel-macron/) > [“The themes that exercised the minds of survivor movements and their allies within the health and welfare professions generated a political project: how to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beatrix-campbell/the-themes-that-exercised-the-minds-of-survivor-movements-and-their/) [Beatrix Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beatrix-campbell/) > [Machiavelli, however, took his bearings from people as they are. He defined the political project as making the best of this flawed material. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/machiavelli-however-took-his-bearings-from-people-as-they-are-he/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [“The confines of enslavement were producing Black people who were intellectually, psychologically, culturally, and behaviorally different, not inferior. Benjamin”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/the-confines-of-enslavement-were-producing-black-people-who-were/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“To justify Black enslavement, Barbados planters actually “preferred” the polygenesis theory over the curse theory of Ham,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/to-justify-black-enslavement-barbados-planters-actually-preferred-the/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“A slave that acknowledges its enslavement is halfway to its liberation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/a-slave-that-acknowledges-its-enslavement-is-halfway-to-its-liberation/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [“A job is a contract whereby you sell out a bit of your life daily”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/a-job-is-a-contract-whereby-you-sell-out-a-bit-of-your-life-daily/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [As it becomes more and more difficult to get land, so will the virtual enslavement of the laboring-classe s go on. As the value…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/as-it-becomes-more-and-more-difficult-to-get-land-so-will-the-virtual/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [“Enslavement to God signifies liberation from all other forms of servitude, and although modern man may think that he is liberated, he is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-w-flood/enslavement-to-god-signifies-liberation-from-all-other-forms-of/) Donald W. Flood > [“I assert most unhesitatingly, that the religion of the south is a mere covering for the most horrid crimes, - a justifier of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-assert-most-unhesitatingly-that-the-religion-of-the-south-is-a-mere/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [Neither should men study war with a view to the enslavement of those who do not deserve to be enslaved; but first of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/neither-should-men-study-war-with-a-view-to-the-enslavement-of-those/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [If all boys could be made to know that with every breath of cigarette smoke they inhale imbecility and exhale manhood ... and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hudson-maxim/if-all-boys-could-be-made-to-know-that-with-every-breath-of-cigarette/) Hudson Maxim > [“Any ministry to black people which is not designed to effect their empowerment is designed to perpetuate their enslavement.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/any-ministry-to-black-people-which-is-not-designed-to-effect-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Here's the reality. The image of a white Jesus has been used to justify enslavement, conquest, colonialism, the genocide of indigenous peoples. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/here-s-the-reality-the-image-of-a-white-jesus-has-been-used-to/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) ## More by Ibram X. Kendi > [“When men oppress their fellowmen, the oppressor ever finds, in the character of the oppressed, a full justification for his oppression.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/when-men-oppress-their-fellowmen-the-oppressor-ever-finds-in-the/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“assimilationists constantly encourage Black adoption of White cultural traits and/or physical ideals.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/assimilationists-constantly-encourage-black-adoption-of-white/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“Enlightenment ideas gave legitimacy to this long-held racist “partiality,” the connection between lightness and Whiteness and reason, on the one hand, and between darkness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/enlightenment-ideas-gave-legitimacy-to-this-long-held-racist/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“Hate and ignorance have not driven the history of racist ideas in America. Racist policies have driven the history of racist ideas in America.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/hate-and-ignorance-have-not-driven-the-history-of-racist-ideas-in/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“From the beginning, it has been a three-sided battle, a battle of antiracist ideas being pitted against two kinds of racist ideas at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/from-the-beginning-it-has-been-a-three-sided-battle-a-battle-of/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“newspaper reports of rape constructed white defendants as individual offenders and black defendants as representative of the failings of their racial group,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/newspaper-reports-of-rape-constructed-white-defendants-as-individual/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“Racist intentions—not policies—became covert after the 1960s.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/racist-intentions-not-policies-became-covert-after-the-1960s/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“Donald Trump’s economic policies are geared toward enriching White male power—but at the expense of most of his White male followers, along with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/donald-trump-s-economic-policies-are-geared-toward-enriching-white/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“individualizing White negativity and generalizing Black negativity.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/individualizing-white-negativity-and-generalizing-black-negativity/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“Racially discriminatory policies have usually sprung from economic, political, and cultural self-interests, self-interests that are constantly changing. Politicians seeking higher office have primarily created…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/racially-discriminatory-policies-have-usually-sprung-from-economic/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“The vicious housing cycle had already begun. Racist policies harmed Black neighborhoods, generating racist ideas that caused people not to want to live next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/the-vicious-housing-cycle-had-already-begun-racist-policies-harmed/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“For Jefferson, power came before freedom. Indeed, power creates freedom, not the other way around—as the powerless are taught.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/for-jefferson-power-came-before-freedom-indeed-power-creates-freedom/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“To justify Black enslavement, Barbados planters actually “preferred” the polygenesis theory over the curse theory of Ham,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/to-justify-black-enslavement-barbados-planters-actually-preferred-the/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“With this law in place, White enslavers could now reap financial reward from relations “upon a negro woman.” But they wanted to prevent the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/with-this-law-in-place-white-enslavers-could-now-reap-financial/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) > [“Our education has filled us with strong prejudices against them,” Hopkins professed, “and led us to consider them, not as our brethren, or in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/our-education-has-filled-us-with-strong-prejudices-against-them/) [Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) [Explore all 140 Ibram X. Kendi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/) ## More Enslavement quotes > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [Here's the reality. The image of a white Jesus has been used to justify enslavement, conquest, colonialism, the genocide of indigenous peoples. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/here-s-the-reality-the-image-of-a-white-jesus-has-been-used-to/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [“Any ministry to black people which is not designed to effect their empowerment is designed to perpetuate their enslavement.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/any-ministry-to-black-people-which-is-not-designed-to-effect-their/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Neither should men study war with a view to the enslavement of those who do not deserve to be enslaved; but first of all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/neither-should-men-study-war-with-a-view-to-the-enslavement-of-those/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [“I assert most unhesitatingly, that the religion of the south is a mere covering for the most horrid crimes, - a justifier of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-assert-most-unhesitatingly-that-the-religion-of-the-south-is-a-mere/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [If all boys could be made to know that with every breath of cigarette smoke they inhale imbecility and exhale manhood ... and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hudson-maxim/if-all-boys-could-be-made-to-know-that-with-every-breath-of-cigarette/) Hudson Maxim > [I was at Mount Tamalpais near San Francisco hiking when a boulder came hurling down the mountainside and smashed my left hand. When I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-casals/i-was-at-mount-tamalpais-near-san-francisco-hiking-when-a-boulder/) [Pablo Casals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-casals/) > [“Your realm is an insane place. In Volaria, no-one goes hungry, slaves are no use when they starve. Those freeborn too lazy or lacking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-ryan/your-realm-is-an-insane-place-in-volaria-no-one-goes-hungry-slaves/) [Anthony Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-ryan/) > [Let us say "Yes" to life and not death. Let us say "Yes" to freedom and not enslavement to the many idols of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/let-us-say-yes-to-life-and-not-death-let-us-say-yes-to-freedom-and/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [“Rumours of Damen’s enslavement in Vere had spread like fire through the camp. To see the Veretian Prince wear the gold cuff of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-pacat/rumours-of-damen-s-enslavement-in-vere-had-spread-like-fire-through/) [C.S. Pacat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-pacat/) > [“Enslavement to God signifies liberation from all other forms of servitude, and although modern man may think that he is liberated, he is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-w-flood/enslavement-to-god-signifies-liberation-from-all-other-forms-of/) Donald W. Flood > [As it becomes more and more difficult to get land, so will the virtual enslavement of the laboring-classe s go on. As the value…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-george/as-it-becomes-more-and-more-difficult-to-get-land-so-will-the-virtual/) [Henry George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-george/) > [“Until you realize how easy it is for your mind to be manipulated, you remain the puppet of someone else's game.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evita-ochel/until-you-realize-how-easy-it-is-for-your-mind-to-be-manipulated-you/) Evita Ochel > [Women's Liberation calls it enslavement but the real truth about the sexual revolution is that it has made of sex an almost chaotically limitless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/midge-decter/women-s-liberation-calls-it-enslavement-but-the-real-truth-about-the/) [Midge Decter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/midge-decter/) > [“A job is a contract whereby you sell out a bit of your life daily”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/a-job-is-a-contract-whereby-you-sell-out-a-bit-of-your-life-daily/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) [Browse all 193 Enslavement quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enslavement/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“hierarchy-making was wielded in the service of a political project: enslavement.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ibram X. Kendi" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-service-of-a-political-project/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Enslavement" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-service-of-a-political-project/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/ibram-x-kendi-3080_politics_hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-serv_1786108.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/ibram-x-kendi-3080_politics_hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-serv_1786108.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/367/ibram-x-kendi-3080_politics_hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-serv_1786108.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“hierarchy-making was wielded in the service of a political project: enslavement.” — Ibram X. Kendi", "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": "Ibram X. Kendi", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibram-x-kendi/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“hierarchy-making was wielded in the service...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-service-of-a-political-project/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibram-x-kendi/hierarchy-making-was-wielded-in-the-service-of-a-political-project/#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 } } ] } ```