--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It’s no disgrace to be black, but it’s…" description: "\"It’s no disgrace to be black, but it’s often very inconvenient.\" — James Weldon Johnson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/james-weldon-johnson-10512_black_it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-of_3205673.png" --- # It’s no disgrace to be black, but it’s often very… ![“It’s no disgrace to be black, but it’s often very inconvenient.” quote by James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/james-weldon-johnson-10512_black_it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-of_3205673.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/james-weldon-johnson-10512_black_it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-of_3205673.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/james-weldon-johnson-10512_black_it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-of_3205673.png) > “It’s no disgrace to be black, but it’s often very inconvenient.” [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Being Black is not shameful, but societal structures often make it inconvenient and oppressive **In simple terms:** Blackness is not a disgrace, yet systemic barriers cause hardship Key Takeaway Advocate for equity and challenge systemic inconvenience Themes racial identity social injustice resilience Mood determined hopeful Type activist philosophical When to use this quote - education - policy reform - community activism - personal empowerment Key Concepts critical race theory social dynamics empowerment Questions to Reflect On - How can individuals confront systemic inconvenience? - What actions can reduce the daily burdens faced by Black people? A Different Perspective Changing societal structures requires collective effort beyond individual resilience ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) [Black Inconvenient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-inconvenient-5969726/) [Disgrace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disgrace/) [Disgrace Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disgrace-black-5969727/) [Inconvenient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inconvenient/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Shame](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shame/) ## Related quotes > [Poverty is no disgrace to a man, but it is confoundedly inconvenient](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/poverty-is-no-disgrace-to-a-man-but-it-is-confoundedly-inconvenient/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [Poverty us no disgrace to a man, but it is confoundedly inconvenient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-smith/poverty-us-no-disgrace-to-a-man-but-it-is-confoundedly-inconvenient/) [Sydney Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-smith/) > [It's no disgrace to be old. But damn if it isn't inconvenient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moms-mabley/it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-old-but-damn-if-it-isn-t-inconvenient/) [Moms Mabley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moms-mabley/) > [Poverty is not a disgrace, but it's terribly inconvenient.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/poverty-is-not-a-disgrace-but-it-s-terribly-inconvenient/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [If I wrote at all, I must throw myself headlong into the great political maelstrom, and would of course be swallowed up like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-swisshelm/if-i-wrote-at-all-i-must-throw-myself-headlong-into-the-great/) [Jane Swisshelm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-swisshelm/) > [There is but a step between a proud man's glory and his disgrace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/publilius-syrus/there-is-but-a-step-between-a-proud-man-s-glory-and-his-disgrace/) [Publilius Syrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/publilius-syrus/) > [To those whose God is honor; only disgrace is a sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hare/to-those-whose-god-is-honor-only-disgrace-is-a-sin/) [David Hare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hare/) > [All lies, white or black, disgrace a gentleman, although I grant there is a difference: to say the least of it, it is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-marryat/all-lies-white-or-black-disgrace-a-gentleman-although-i-grant-there/) [Frederick Marryat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-marryat/) > [Sometimes one must try anything, it is no disgrace. On the contrary, it is a sign of wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/sometimes-one-must-try-anything-it-is-no-disgrace-on-the-contrary-it/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [There is no disgrace in peace. There can never be dishonor in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-llywelyn/there-is-no-disgrace-in-peace-there-can-never-be-dishonor-in-peace/) [Morgan Llywelyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-llywelyn/) > [I had the feeling that if I encountered anyone they would intuit my disgrace and would judge me instantly. Nothing is more isolating than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-powers/i-had-the-feeling-that-if-i-encountered-anyone-they-would-intuit-my/) [Kevin Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-powers/) > [He will be the last to discover the disgrace of his house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juvenal/he-will-be-the-last-to-discover-the-disgrace-of-his-house/) [Juvenal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juvenal/) > [“a little modesty averts disgrace”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bemy-wells/a-little-modesty-averts-disgrace/) [Bemy Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bemy-wells/) > [Poverty of course is no disgrace, but it is damned annoying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-pitt/poverty-of-course-is-no-disgrace-but-it-is-damned-annoying/) [William Pitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-pitt/) > [Losing is no disgrace if you've given your best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-palmer/losing-is-no-disgrace-if-you-ve-given-your-best/) [Jim Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-palmer/) ## More by James Weldon Johnson > [There are a great many colored people who are ashamed of the cake-walk, but I think they ought to be proud of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/there-are-a-great-many-colored-people-who-are-ashamed-of-the-cake/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [Nothing great or enduring, especially in music, has ever sprung full-fledged and unprecedented from the brain of any master; the best he gives to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/nothing-great-or-enduring-especially-in-music-has-ever-sprung-full/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [Lift every voice and sing Till earth and heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of Liberty. Let our rejoicing rise high as the listening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/lift-every-voice-and-sing-till-earth-and-heaven-ring-ring-with-the/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [A people may become great through many means, but there is only one measure by which its greatness is recognized and acknowledged. 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I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/shortly-after-this-i-was-made-a-member-of-the-boys-choir-it-being/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [This country can have no more democracy than it accords and guarantees to the humblest and weakest citizen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/this-country-can-have-no-more-democracy-than-it-accords-and/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [So God stepped over to the edge of the world And He spat out the seven seas; He batted His eyes, and the lightnings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/so-god-stepped-over-to-the-edge-of-the-world-and-he-spat-out-the/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [My mother was kept very busy with her sewing; sometimes she would have another woman helping her.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/my-mother-was-kept-very-busy-with-her-sewing-sometimes-she-would-have/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [We have come over a way that with tears has been watered, We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/we-have-come-over-a-way-that-with-tears-has-been-watered-we-have-come/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [O Black and unknown bards of long ago, How came your lips to touch the sacred fire?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/o-black-and-unknown-bards-of-long-ago-how-came-your-lips-to-touch-the/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [Southern white people despise the Negro as a race, and will do nothing to aid in his elevation as such; but for certain individuals…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/southern-white-people-despise-the-negro-as-a-race-and-will-do-nothing/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) > [Amsterdam was a great surprise to me. I had always thought of Venice as the city of canals; it had never entered my mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/amsterdam-was-a-great-surprise-to-me-i-had-always-thought-of-venice/) [James Weldon Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) [Explore all 65 James Weldon Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/) ## More Black quotes > [I wanted to write about voodoo tradition that I feel has been very important to survival of black people here: people of the African…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-wanted-to-write-about-voodoo-tradition-that-i-feel-has-been-very/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [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/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [How can you be more subject; black woman in a white man's world?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/how-can-you-be-more-subject-black-woman-in-a-white-man-s-world/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [We have to build our own power. We have to win every single political office we can, where we have a majority of black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-lou-hamer/we-have-to-build-our-own-power-we-have-to-win-every-single-political/) [Fannie Lou Hamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-lou-hamer/) > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Black music has always known, and not been afraid to acknowledge just how high the stakes of Black thought are. To summarize the final…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-b-wilderson-iii/black-music-has-always-known-and-not-been-afraid-to-acknowledge-just/) [Frank B. Wilderson III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-b-wilderson-iii/) > [I know how hard it is to be a woman, especially a black woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tyson/i-know-how-hard-it-is-to-be-a-woman-especially-a-black-woman/) [Mike Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tyson/) > [If soot stains your tunic, dye it black. This is vengeance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-scott-bakker/if-soot-stains-your-tunic-dye-it-black-this-is-vengeance/) [R. Scott Bakker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-scott-bakker/) > [Hollywood is so fixated on keeping it that way because it's generating the buzz, but that representation isn't right. I definitely feel like it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyega/hollywood-is-so-fixated-on-keeping-it-that-way-because-it-s/) [John Boyega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyega/) > [Nowadays most people wear black most of the time anyway: go to a literary party and one would imagine everyone there was in perpetual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-weldon/nowadays-most-people-wear-black-most-of-the-time-anyway-go-to-a/) [Fay Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-weldon/) > [There ain't no such thing as black Muslims. That's how they tried to cut off all my brothers in the rest of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/there-ain-t-no-such-thing-as-black-muslims-that-s-how-they-tried-to/) [Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) [Browse all 11,655 Black quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It’s no disgrace to be black, but it’s often very inconvenient.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "James Weldon Johnson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-often-very-inconvenient/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Black" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-often-very-inconvenient/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/james-weldon-johnson-10512_black_it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-of_3205673.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/james-weldon-johnson-10512_black_it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-of_3205673.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a27/james-weldon-johnson-10512_black_it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-of_3205673.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It’s no disgrace to be black, but it’s often very inconvenient.” — James Weldon Johnson", "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": "James Weldon Johnson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-weldon-johnson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It’s no disgrace to be black,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-often-very-inconvenient/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-weldon-johnson/it-s-no-disgrace-to-be-black-but-it-s-often-very-inconvenient/#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 } } ] } ```