--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There were colored and white waiting…" description: "\"There were colored and white waiting rooms everywhere, from doctor's offices to the bus stations, as people may already know. But there were actually c..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce8/isabel-wilkerson-10765_atlanta_there-were-colored-and-white-waiting-roo_658723.jpg" --- # There were colored and white waiting rooms everywhere… ![“There were colored and white waiting rooms everywhere, from doctor's offices to the bus stations, as people may already know. But there were actually colored windows at the post office in, for example, Pensacola, Florida. And there were white and colored telephone booths in Oklahoma. And there…” quote by Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce8/isabel-wilkerson-10765_atlanta_there-were-colored-and-white-waiting-roo_658723.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce8/isabel-wilkerson-10765_atlanta_there-were-colored-and-white-waiting-roo_658723.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce8/isabel-wilkerson-10765_atlanta_there-were-colored-and-white-waiting-roo_658723.jpg) > “There were colored and white waiting rooms everywhere, from doctor's offices to the bus stations, as people may already know. But there were actually colored windows at the post office in, for example, Pensacola, Florida. And there were white and colored telephone booths in Oklahoma. And there were separate windows where white people and black people would go to get their license plates in Indianola, Mississippi. And there were even separate tellers to make your deposits at the First National Bank in Atlanta.” [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote illustrates how segregation was enforced through everyday spaces, showing systemic racism embedded in public infrastructure. **In simple terms:** Segregation was built into ordinary places. Key Takeaway Recognize hidden segregation in daily life. Themes racism segregation infrastructure history social justice Mood reflective somber critical Type historical social commentary When to use this quote - public services - banking - government offices - transport hubs - public facilities Key Concepts Structural racism spatial segregation institutional discrimination Questions to Reflect On - How do modern policies perpetuate subtle segregation? - What can individuals do to expose hidden inequities? A Different Perspective The examples may be historical and not reflect current legal standards. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Atlanta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atlanta/) [Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) [Black people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-people/) [Bus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bus/) [Colored Telephone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/colored-telephone-5252751/) [Colored White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/colored-white-5252750/) [Colored Windows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/colored-windows-1422072/) [Deposits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deposits/) [Doctors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doctors/) [Example](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/example/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Florida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/florida/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [License](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/license/) [License plate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/license-plate/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Mississippi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mississippi/) [Office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/office/) [Oklahoma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/oklahoma/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Plates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plates/) [Post office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/post-office/) [Posts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/posts/) [Red and white](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/red-and-white/) [Rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rooms/) [Stations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stations/) [Telephones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/telephones/) [Waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waiting/) [Waiting rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waiting-rooms/) [White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/white/) [White people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/white-people/) [White Waiting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/white-waiting-2058390/) [Window](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/window/) ## Related quotes > [In it not easy to remain rational and normal mentally in such a setting where, even in our airport in Montgomery, there is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosa-parks/in-it-not-easy-to-remain-rational-and-normal-mentally-in-such-a/) [Rosa Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosa-parks/) > [“...I will find once again the light of your beauty - your colored windows in the night...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-geddes/i-will-find-once-again-the-light-of-your-beauty-your-colored-windows/) [John Geddes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-geddes/) > [Waiting rooms were made for books-of course! But so are theater lobbies before the show, long and boring checkout lines, and everyone's favorite, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/waiting-rooms-were-made-for-books-of-course-but-so-are-theater/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [Why don't they have waiters in waiting rooms?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/why-don-t-they-have-waiters-in-waiting-rooms/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [Put a smile on your face. Don't sit in the waiting room of life. Go do something, happily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/put-a-smile-on-your-face-don-t-sit-in-the-waiting-room-of-life-go-do/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Everybody is in the waiting room of life. Yoga is not a waiting. It is a doing, today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/everybody-is-in-the-waiting-room-of-life-yoga-is-not-a-waiting-it-is/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Death is the waiting-room where we robe ourselves for immortality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/death-is-the-waiting-room-where-we-robe-ourselves-for-immortality/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [“I don’t mind waiting rooms. I’m waiting on the love of my life, so I may as well have a seat, right?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-don-t-mind-waiting-rooms-i-m-waiting-on-the-love-of-my-life-so-i/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [Neither death nor wisdom has a full stop. There are only commas-no destinations, only waiting rooms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/devdutt-pattanaik/neither-death-nor-wisdom-has-a-full-stop-there-are-only-commas-no/) [Devdutt Pattanaik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/devdutt-pattanaik/) > [How does God teach me love? By putting me around unlovely people. How does God teach me joy in the middle of grief? Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/how-does-god-teach-me-love-by-putting-me-around-unlovely-people-how/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I hate the waiting room. Because it's called the waiting room, there's no chance of not waiting. It's built, designed, and intended for waiting.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-seinfeld/i-hate-the-waiting-room-because-it-s-called-the-waiting-room-there-s/) [Jerry Seinfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-seinfeld/) > [“He quite liked dentists’ waiting rooms. Waiting for dentists was good. Waiting for them was so much better than having them stick metal spikes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackson-radcliffe/he-quite-liked-dentists-waiting-rooms-waiting-for-dentists-was-good/) [Jackson Radcliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackson-radcliffe/) > [The greatest gratification that I get to work with these hands is that when I come out and I go to the waiting room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfredo-quinones-hinojosa/the-greatest-gratification-that-i-get-to-work-with-these-hands-is/) [Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfredo-quinones-hinojosa/) > [Across the nation, thousands of people are lining up in hospital waiting rooms, out the doors, down the steps, around the corners, and behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/across-the-nation-thousands-of-people-are-lining-up-in-hospital/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) > [Reading is the creative center of a writer’s life. I take a book with me everywhere I go, and find there are all sorts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/reading-is-the-creative-center-of-a-writer-s-life-i-take-a-book-with/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) ## More by Isabel Wilkerson > [“That one over this is the one for the use of the white people,” Judge Amistead Jones said. “Not that I am a stickler…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/that-one-over-this-is-the-one-for-the-use-of-the-white-people-judge/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [“...they speak like melted butter and their children speak like footsteps on pavement...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/they-speak-like-melted-butter-and-their-children-speak-like-footsteps/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [Many immigrants do not talk about what they endured back home. They were fleeing that world, and when they left they didn't want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/many-immigrants-do-not-talk-about-what-they-endured-back-home-they/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [“Many of the people who left the South never exactly sat their children down to tell them these things, tell them what happened and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/many-of-the-people-who-left-the-south-never-exactly-sat-their/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [“Fifteen thousand men, women, and children gathered to watch eighteen-year-old Jesse Washington as he was burned alive in Waco, Texas, in May 1916. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/fifteen-thousand-men-women-and-children-gathered-to-watch-eighteen/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [It occurred to me that no matter where I lived, geography could not save me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/it-occurred-to-me-that-no-matter-where-i-lived-geography-could-not/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [Well, I'm a daughter of the great migration as, really, the majority of African Americans that you meet in the north and west are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/well-i-m-a-daughter-of-the-great-migration-as-really-the-majority-of/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [“I don’t see one white person in this block selling drugs. They got the nerve to be mad at the blue-eyed devil. You don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/i-don-t-see-one-white-person-in-this-block-selling-drugs-they-got-the/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [“That the Negro American has survived at all is extraordinary —a lesser people might simply have died out, as indeed others have. — DANIEL…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/that-the-negro-american-has-survived-at-all-is-extraordinary-a-lesser/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [“The reality was that Jim Crow filtered through the economy, north and south, and pressed down on poor and working-class people of all races.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/the-reality-was-that-jim-crow-filtered-through-the-economy-north-and/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [I mean my mother migrated from Georgia -Rome, Georgia, to Washington, D.C., where she then met my father, who was a Tuskegee Airman who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/i-mean-my-mother-migrated-from-georgia-rome-georgia-to-washington-d-c/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [You must leave this world a better place than it would have been if you had not existed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/you-must-leave-this-world-a-better-place-than-it-would-have-been-if/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [“County supervisors relented only after losing their case in the U.S. Supreme Court, choosing finally to reopen the schools rather than face imprisonment.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/county-supervisors-relented-only-after-losing-their-case-in-the-u-s/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [My parents sent me to a school across town, an integrated school, where I had the chance to meet and grow up with people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/my-parents-sent-me-to-a-school-across-town-an-integrated-school-where/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) > [“The story describes an incident during the trial of a black schoolteacher accused of disposing of a mule on which there was a mortgage.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-wilkerson/the-story-describes-an-incident-during-the-trial-of-a-black/) [Isabel Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) [Explore all 63 Isabel Wilkerson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-wilkerson/) ## More Atlanta quotes > [I never thought I'd be on the cover of the 'Atlanta Journal' unless I killed someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-robinson/i-never-thought-i-d-be-on-the-cover-of-the-atlanta-journal-unless-i/) [Chris Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-robinson/) > [We are creating the new Atlanta, along with Rich Homie Quan and Young Thug. We bring the spaghetti, put it in the bowl, mix…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quavo/we-are-creating-the-new-atlanta-along-with-rich-homie-quan-and-young/) [Quavo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quavo/) > [I'm an Atlanta guy. I think Philly knows that. But I've adopted Philly as my second home, and they've embraced me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-williams/i-m-an-atlanta-guy-i-think-philly-knows-that-but-i-ve-adopted-philly/) [Lou Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-williams/) > [When Olympic decathlon gold medalist Bruce Jenner asked a roomful of Olympic hopefuls if they had a list of written goals, every one raised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-canfield/when-olympic-decathlon-gold-medalist-bruce-jenner-asked-a-roomful-of/) [Jack Canfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-canfield/) > [If you go to Atlanta, the first question people ask you is, "What's your business?" In Macon they ask, "Where do you go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-berendt/if-you-go-to-atlanta-the-first-question-people-ask-you-is-what-s-your/) [John Berendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-berendt/) > [It took a qualified wizard to detect a summoning in progress. It required only a half-literate idiot with a twitch of power and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilona-andrews/it-took-a-qualified-wizard-to-detect-a-summoning-in-progress-it/) [Ilona Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilona-andrews/) > [I'm very appreciative to the people of Atlanta, forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-horford/i-m-very-appreciative-to-the-people-of-atlanta-forever/) [Al Horford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-horford/) > [I'm a southern girl, and I grew up with this slightly schizophrenic upbringing where I bounced back and forth between Atlanta, Georgia, and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-myracle/i-m-a-southern-girl-and-i-grew-up-with-this-slightly-schizophrenic/) [Lauren Myracle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-myracle/) > [I was a news anchor in Macon for a year and a half, and a news reporter for exactly one year in Spartanburg before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-johnson-jr/i-was-a-news-anchor-in-macon-for-a-year-and-a-half-and-a-news/) [Ernie Johnson Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-johnson-jr/) > [In his study of Atlanta over the last 60 years, Kevin Kruse convincingly describes the critical connections between race, Sun Belt suburbanization, the rise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-carter/in-his-study-of-atlanta-over-the-last-60-years-kevin-kruse/) [Dan Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-carter/) > [Atlanta is Exhibit A in my belief that the marriage between hip-hop and sports is a failure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-whitlock/atlanta-is-exhibit-a-in-my-belief-that-the-marriage-between-hip-hop/) [Jason Whitlock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-whitlock/) > [Atlanta was a welcoming presence for a lot of artists; they called it 'the Mecca of the South.' I got to see the Negro…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/latanya-richardson/atlanta-was-a-welcoming-presence-for-a-lot-of-artists-they-called-it/) [LaTanya Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/latanya-richardson/) > [I can't be calm when I drive through sections of Atlanta that look more like Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, than America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-mckinney/i-can-t-be-calm-when-i-drive-through-sections-of-atlanta-that-look/) [Cynthia McKinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-mckinney/) > [Coming from the south side of Atlanta, Georgia, everyone has a chip on their shoulder. That's how competitive it is. It makes athletes great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-coleman/coming-from-the-south-side-of-atlanta-georgia-everyone-has-a-chip-on/) [Christian Coleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-coleman/) > [I think it's important for artists to work together. It's great for fans to see, like, Ludacris came out to our show in Atlanta…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-aldean/i-think-it-s-important-for-artists-to-work-together-it-s-great-for/) [Jason Aldean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-aldean/) [Browse all 416 Atlanta quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/atlanta/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There were colored and white waiting rooms everywhere, from doctor's offices to the bus stations, as people may already know. But there were actually colored windows at the post office in, for example, Pensacola, Florida. And there were white and colored telephone booths in Oklahoma. And there were separate windows where white people and black people would go to get their license plates in Indianola, Mississippi. 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