--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: the only thing extraordinary about White…" description: "\"“the only thing extraordinary about White people is that they think something is extraordinary about White people. I”\" — Ibram X. Kendi" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/494/ibram-x-kendi-3080_white-people_the-only-thing-extraordinary-about-white_1491068.jpg" --- # the only thing extraordinary about White people is that… ![“the only thing extraordinary about White people is that they think something is extraordinary about White people. I” quote by Ibram X. Kendi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/494/ibram-x-kendi-3080_white-people_the-only-thing-extraordinary-about-white_1491068.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/494/ibram-x-kendi-3080_white-people_the-only-thing-extraordinary-about-white_1491068.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/494/ibram-x-kendi-3080_white-people_the-only-thing-extraordinary-about-white_1491068.jpg) > ““the only thing extraordinary about White people is that they think something is extraordinary about White people. I”” [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. The notion that white people view themselves as extraordinary is itself an extraordinary claim, exposing hidden biases. **In simple terms:** White exceptionalism is a biased belief. Key Takeaway Challenge and question assumptions of superiority. Themes racism identity bias Mood critical thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - education - policy - media representation - personal interactions Key Concepts white privilege self‑reflection Questions to Reflect On - How do you recognize subtle biases? - What actions can dismantle perceived superiority? A Different Perspective Confronting bias can be uncomfortable and met resistance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Extraordinary White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extraordinary-white-5449179/) [People Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-think/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Thing Extraordinary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-extraordinary-1070553/) [Think Extraordinary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-extraordinary-2600555/) [White people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/white-people/) ## Related quotes > [“There is one thing that I do find extraordinary and it never ceases to amaze me. That even in this day and age, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretia-grindle/there-is-one-thing-that-i-do-find-extraordinary-and-it-never-ceases/) [Lucretia Grindle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretia-grindle/) > [True wisdom is a thing very extraordinary. Happy are they that have it: and next to them, not those many that think they have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-tillotson/true-wisdom-is-a-thing-very-extraordinary-happy-are-they-that-have-it/) [John Tillotson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-tillotson/) > [When my parents were liberated, four years before I was born, they found that the ordinary world outside the camp had been eradicated. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-michaels/when-my-parents-were-liberated-four-years-before-i-was-born-they/) [Anne Michaels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-michaels/) > [If we admit a thing so extraordinary as the creation of this world, it should seem that we admit something strange, and odd, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-berkeley/if-we-admit-a-thing-so-extraordinary-as-the-creation-of-this-world-it-2/) [George Berkeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-berkeley/) > [If we admit a thing so extraordinary as the creation of this world, it should seem that we admit something strange, and odd, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-berkeley/if-we-admit-a-thing-so-extraordinary-as-the-creation-of-this-world-it/) [George Berkeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-berkeley/) > [Lots of white people think black people are stupid. They are stupid themselves for thinking so, but regulation will not make them smarter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-l-carter/lots-of-white-people-think-black-people-are-stupid-they-are-stupid/) [Stephen L. Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-l-carter/) > [Although we think of them as extraordinary, miracles also streak across our consciousness every day. We can choose to notice or ignore them, unaware…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/although-we-think-of-them-as-extraordinary-miracles-also-streak/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I always say to myself, what is the most important thing we can think about at this extraordinary moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/i-always-say-to-myself-what-is-the-most-important-thing-we-can-think/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [I think this is the most extraordinary collection of talent, of human knowledge, that has ever been gathered at the White House - with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/i-think-this-is-the-most-extraordinary-collection-of-talent-of-human/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [“The great inventions would have not become a reality if their inventors listened to criticism or paid attention to people who tried to hold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taskinsoy/the-great-inventions-would-have-not-become-a-reality-if-their/) [JOHN TASKINSOY](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taskinsoy/) > [I think it's the most extraordinary studio around. I would love to do my next project with Pixar.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-bird/i-think-it-s-the-most-extraordinary-studio-around-i-would-love-to-do/) [Brad Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-bird/) > [Each individual is as individual as their fingerprints, and I think that's extraordinary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-lennox/each-individual-is-as-individual-as-their-fingerprints-and-i-think/) [Annie Lennox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-lennox/) > [“You know, the most amazing thing happened to me tonight," he would say. “I saw a car with the license plate ARW 357. Can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/you-know-the-most-amazing-thing-happened-to-me-tonight-he-would-say-i/) [Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/) > [That's the trouble with stories. People start out fantastic. You think they're extraordinary, but it turns out as the work goes along, they're just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-paley/that-s-the-trouble-with-stories-people-start-out-fantastic-you-think/) [Grace Paley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-paley/) > [I think the most extraordinary thing about fans is the level of excellence that they show in the work that they do. I mean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-capaldi/i-think-the-most-extraordinary-thing-about-fans-is-the-level-of/) [Peter Capaldi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-capaldi/) ## 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 Racism 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/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. 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