--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not racist:' Many self-proclaimed…" description: "\"I'm not racist:' Many self-proclaimed white allies say this to shut down conversations about how racism affects our society.\" — Jason Johnson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99e/jason-johnson-5687_allies_i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-whit_1963994.jpg" --- # I'm not racist:' Many self-proclaimed white allies say… ![“I'm not racist:' Many self-proclaimed white allies say this to shut down conversations about how racism affects our society.” quote by Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99e/jason-johnson-5687_allies_i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-whit_1963994.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99e/jason-johnson-5687_allies_i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-whit_1963994.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99e/jason-johnson-5687_allies_i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-whit_1963994.jpg) > “I'm not racist:' Many self-proclaimed white allies say this to shut down conversations about how racism affects our society.” [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self‑identified white allies claim non‑racism to silence discussions on systemic racism. **In simple terms:** Ally statements can shut down dialogue. Key Takeaway Encourage honest conversation. Themes racism allyiance dialogue Mood thoughtful concerned Type social critical When to use this quote - community forums - educational workshops - media analysis - policy debates Key Concepts social justice identity politics communication Questions to Reflect On - How can allies speak without silencing? - What alternatives exist to “I’m not racist”? A Different Perspective Such claims may mask complicity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Allies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allies/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) ## Related quotes > [I needed to join the Navy. If you ask the people in Europe who won World War II, they don't say the Allies, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-feller/i-needed-to-join-the-navy-if-you-ask-the-people-in-europe-who-won/) [Bob Feller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-feller/) > [When Negroes looked for the second phase, the realization of equality, they found that many of their white allies had quietly disappeared… To stay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/when-negroes-looked-for-the-second-phase-the-realization-of-equality/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [“In a situation of occupation or domination, the occupier, the dominant power, has to justify what it’s doing. There is only one way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/in-a-situation-of-occupation-or-domination-the-occupier-the-dominant/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [While white women and men of color also experience discrimination, all too often their experiences are taken as the only point of departure for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/while-white-women-and-men-of-color-also-experience-discrimination-all/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [If you ask the people in Europe who won World War II, they don't say the Allies; they say the United States won the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-feller/if-you-ask-the-people-in-europe-who-won-world-war-ii-they-don-t-say/) [Bob Feller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-feller/) > [ \[Civil right leaders\]themselves in their pronouncements will tell you they need white allies, they need white help, they need white this. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/civil-right-leaders-themselves-in-their-pronouncements-will-tell-you/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [“Bacteria and viruses were the most effective allies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-hughes-galeano/bacteria-and-viruses-were-the-most-effective-allies/) [Eduardo Hughes Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-hughes-galeano/) > [What would your life be like if your body were your friend and ally?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiane-northrup/what-would-your-life-be-like-if-your-body-were-your-friend-and-ally/) [Christiane Northrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiane-northrup/) > [So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-americans-understand-the-costs-of-war-yet-as-a-country-we-will/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Our security depends on having good relationships with our allies. Donald Trump mainly shows contempt for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-wolfowitz/our-security-depends-on-having-good-relationships-with-our-allies/) [Paul Wolfowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-wolfowitz/) > [One of our great allies at present is the Church itself. Do not misunderstand me. I do not mean the Church as we see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/one-of-our-great-allies-at-present-is-the-church-itself-do-not/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [ No wonder that Churchill described this effort \[the British codebreakers working at Bletchley Park\] as "Britian"s secret weapon," a weapon far more effective than… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hilton/no-wonder-that-churchill-described-this-effort-the-british/) [Peter Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hilton/) > [As far as Japan is concerned, I want to help all of our allies, but we are losing billions and billions of dollars. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/as-far-as-japan-is-concerned-i-want-to-help-all-of-our-allies-but-we/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [If the women in the factories stopped work for twenty minutes, the Allies would lose the war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joffre/if-the-women-in-the-factories-stopped-work-for-twenty-minutes-the/) Joseph Joffre > [I genuinely did not expect more than half our nation to choose to walk away from our long-term allies into the arms of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-reade/i-genuinely-did-not-expect-more-than-half-our-nation-to-choose-to/) Brian Reade ## More by Jason Johnson > [In the battle for police reform, accountability and justice, Americans don't have to re-invent the wheel. We just have to revoke the thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/in-the-battle-for-police-reform-accountability-and-justice-americans/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [The harsh truth is that Trump is a living co-morbidity, he's over 70, out of shape, eats terribly and doesn't believe in science. In…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/the-harsh-truth-is-that-trump-is-a-living-co-morbidity-he-s-over-70/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [The NFL is a league that despite new 'safety rules' is still so fundamentally violent to the Black body that even Calvin Candie would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/the-nfl-is-a-league-that-despite-new-safety-rules-is-still-so/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [I will admit upfront that I have an inherent bias about 'Fuge State.' It's the story of a Black academic on his way to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/i-will-admit-upfront-that-i-have-an-inherent-bias-about-fuge-state-it/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [I quite famously don't know how to play spades, but even I know that you can't switch up the house rules from Joker Joker…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/i-quite-famously-don-t-know-how-to-play-spades-but-even-i-know-that/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [What turned white women from the pejorative 53% to the blue wave of 2018? Brett Kavanaugh. Those hearings were so explosive, so horrific and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/what-turned-white-women-from-the-pejorative-53-to-the-blue-wave-of/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [History is a group project where, like in high school, one person usually does much of the work but someone else gets to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/history-is-a-group-project-where-like-in-high-school-one-person/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [The Establishment is no longer old white men in a smoke-filled room playing kingmaker. Not in an era of social media, wild-wild west campaign…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/the-establishment-is-no-longer-old-white-men-in-a-smoke-filled-room/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [In addition to politics, I usually write about super heroes, science fiction and afro-futurism, so a collection of blaxploitation movies from the mid-70s didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/in-addition-to-politics-i-usually-write-about-super-heroes-science/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [I don't know who Joe Biden is talking to, but I don't know one Black person in America who sees the Proud Boys tearing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/i-don-t-know-who-joe-biden-is-talking-to-but-i-don-t-know-one-black/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [Election laws in America are so vague, so open to interpretation and so inconsistently enforced that Donald Trump, along with his allies in State…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/election-laws-in-america-are-so-vague-so-open-to-interpretation-and/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [You could easily rename 'Captain America: Civil War' as 'Captain America Defunds S.H.I.E.L.D' and nobody would've noticed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/you-could-easily-rename-captain-america-civil-war-as-captain-america/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [There's always something special about being down with something before it goes mainstream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/there-s-always-something-special-about-being-down-with-something/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [Everybody has to know rules and agree to the rules before the game starts, otherwise, you're not really playing, or worse, you are playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/everybody-has-to-know-rules-and-agree-to-the-rules-before-the-game/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) > [Full disclosure, I know as much about Black horror films as I do about blaxploitation films in general, which is little to nothing, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/full-disclosure-i-know-as-much-about-black-horror-films-as-i-do-about/) [Jason Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) [Explore all 100 Jason Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/) ## More Allies quotes > [I genuinely did not expect more than half our nation to choose to walk away from our long-term allies into the arms of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-reade/i-genuinely-did-not-expect-more-than-half-our-nation-to-choose-to/) Brian Reade > [If the women in the factories stopped work for twenty minutes, the Allies would lose the war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joffre/if-the-women-in-the-factories-stopped-work-for-twenty-minutes-the/) Joseph Joffre > [As far as Japan is concerned, I want to help all of our allies, but we are losing billions and billions of dollars. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/as-far-as-japan-is-concerned-i-want-to-help-all-of-our-allies-but-we/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [ No wonder that Churchill described this effort \[the British codebreakers working at Bletchley Park\] as "Britian"s secret weapon," a weapon far more effective than… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-hilton/no-wonder-that-churchill-described-this-effort-the-british/) [Peter Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-hilton/) > [One of our great allies at present is the Church itself. Do not misunderstand me. I do not mean the Church as we see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/one-of-our-great-allies-at-present-is-the-church-itself-do-not/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) > [Our security depends on having good relationships with our allies. Donald Trump mainly shows contempt for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-wolfowitz/our-security-depends-on-having-good-relationships-with-our-allies/) [Paul Wolfowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-wolfowitz/) > [So Americans understand the costs of war. Yet as a country, we will never tolerate our security being threatened, nor stand idly by when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/so-americans-understand-the-costs-of-war-yet-as-a-country-we-will/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [What would your life be like if your body were your friend and ally?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christiane-northrup/what-would-your-life-be-like-if-your-body-were-your-friend-and-ally/) [Christiane Northrup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christiane-northrup/) > [“Bacteria and viruses were the most effective allies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-hughes-galeano/bacteria-and-viruses-were-the-most-effective-allies/) [Eduardo Hughes Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-hughes-galeano/) > [When black women are down with you and in your corner, you have an ally that will move Heaven and Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-perry/when-black-women-are-down-with-you-and-in-your-corner-you-have-an/) [Tyler Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-perry/) > [There is an irreplaceable ally. It's called the United States of America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-netanyahu/there-is-an-irreplaceable-ally-it-s-called-the-united-states-of/) [Benjamin Netanyahu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-netanyahu/) > [It would have been easier to fight alone with inadequate forces than to have to accept...responsibility for our ally's lack of fighting qualities and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-kesselring/it-would-have-been-easier-to-fight-alone-with-inadequate-forces-than/) [Albert Kesselring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-kesselring/) > [It isn't until you begin to fight in your own cause that you become really committed to winning and become a genuine ally of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-morgan/it-isn-t-until-you-begin-to-fight-in-your-own-cause-that-you-become/) [Robin Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-morgan/) > [ Again, I hear almost everyday from atheists who write off religion as primitive, premodern nonsense. I summon Aquinas, Augustine, Paul \[of Tarsus\], Teresa of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/again-i-hear-almost-everyday-from-atheists-who-write-off-religion-as/) [Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/) > [My own take on the word "transgender" is that it's an umbrella term for anyone who breaks any rules, laws, guidelines or protocol of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-bornstein/my-own-take-on-the-word-transgender-is-that-it-s-an-umbrella-term-for/) [Kate Bornstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-bornstein/) [Browse all 1,053 Allies quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allies/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm not racist:' Many self-proclaimed white allies say this to shut down conversations about how racism affects our society.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jason Johnson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-white-allies-say-this-to-shut/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Allies" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-white-allies-say-this-to-shut/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99e/jason-johnson-5687_allies_i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-whit_1963994.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99e/jason-johnson-5687_allies_i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-whit_1963994.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/99e/jason-johnson-5687_allies_i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-whit_1963994.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I'm not racist:' Many self-proclaimed white allies say this to shut down conversations about how racism…” — Jason 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": "Jason Johnson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-johnson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I'm not racist:' Many self-proclaimed white...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-white-allies-say-this-to-shut/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-johnson/i-m-not-racist-many-self-proclaimed-white-allies-say-this-to-shut/#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 } } ] } ```