--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But when they brought Sabira out, the…" description: "\"“But when they brought Sabira out, the crowd parted almost magically. A sea of hands rose faster than a swell and a bidding war commenced, amongst thes..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ead/jay-grewal-46861_american-history_but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-cro_2494006.jpg" --- # But when they brought Sabira out, the crowd parted almost… ![“But when they brought Sabira out, the crowd parted almost magically. A sea of hands rose faster than a swell and a bidding war commenced, amongst these civilized gentlemen who made their living off the backs of slaves.” quote by Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ead/jay-grewal-46861_american-history_but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-cro_2494006.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ead/jay-grewal-46861_american-history_but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-cro_2494006.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ead/jay-grewal-46861_american-history_but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-cro_2494006.jpg) > ““But when they brought Sabira out, the crowd parted almost magically. A sea of hands rose faster than a swell and a bidding war commenced, amongst these civilized gentlemen who made their living off the backs of slaves.”” [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The crowd’s enthusiastic response to Sabira’s appearance sparked a competitive bidding, highlighting the paradox of “civilized” men profiting from slavery. **In simple terms:** A lively crowd bids fiercely, exposing hypocrisy of those profiting from slaves. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge hidden injustices in seemingly refined settings. Themes history economics ethics Mood somber thoughtful Type historical critical When to use this quote - auction houses - historical reenactments - modern trade - social critique Key Concepts slavery market dynamics Questions to Reflect On - What modern practices echo this hypocrisy? - How can we expose hidden exploitation? A Different Perspective The quote romanticizes a violent past without addressing its moral gravity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-history/) [Black history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-history/) [Equality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/equality/) [Slavery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slavery/) [Slaves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slaves/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [“That was when I realized we weren’t born to be slaves. It was ignorant for any man to think he could be the master…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/that-was-when-i-realized-we-weren-t-born-to-be-slaves-it-was-ignorant/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [“How a member of the church—one who had read the Good Lord’s bible—could sit so calmly and watch a man be led to his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/how-a-member-of-the-church-one-who-had-read-the-good-lord-s-bible/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [The left can't wait to condemn this country. The left can't wait to tell stories of how we have, I don't know, just made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/the-left-can-t-wait-to-condemn-this-country-the-left-can-t-wait-to/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [America was founded on the backs of slaves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/america-was-founded-on-the-backs-of-slaves/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [No library of American business achievement is complete without the story of Arthur G. Gaston. . . . Black Titan is a long overdue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-g-graves-sr/no-library-of-american-business-achievement-is-complete-without-the/) [Earl G. Graves, Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-g-graves-sr/) > [“Their story, as the Delany sisters like to say, is not meant as "black" or "women's" history, but American history. It belongs to all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-hill-hearth/their-story-as-the-delany-sisters-like-to-say-is-not-meant-as-black/) [Amy Hill Hearth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-hill-hearth/) > [Never be limited by other people's limited imaginations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-jemison/never-be-limited-by-other-people-s-limited-imaginations/) [Mae Jemison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-jemison/) > [“Yes, my friends, your hunger for history is still pretty segregated. Your knowledge of America often ends at the color line. You end up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-eric-dyson/yes-my-friends-your-hunger-for-history-is-still-pretty-segregated/) [Michael Eric Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-eric-dyson/) > [Let the record show, Black history is American history, and I look forward to sharing this rich history with my family, friends, colleagues, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmine-crockett/let-the-record-show-black-history-is-american-history-and-i-look/) [Jasmine Crockett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasmine-crockett/) > [“Between 1882 and 1968, more black people were lynched in MIssissippi than in any other state.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/between-1882-and-1968-more-black-people-were-lynched-in-mississippi-2/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [The potential for greatness lives within us all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilma-rudolph/the-potential-for-greatness-lives-within-us-all/) [Wilma Rudolph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilma-rudolph/) > [“North Lawndale's Jewish People's Institute actively encouraged blacks to move into the neighborhood, seeking to make it a 'pilot community for interracial living.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/north-lawndale-s-jewish-people-s-institute-actively-encouraged-blacks/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [“In the 1920s, Jim Crow Mississippi was, in all facets of society, a kleptocracy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/in-the-1920s-jim-crow-mississippi-was-in-all-facets-of-society-a/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [“A government offering such bounty to builders and lenders could have required compliance with a nondiscrimination policy. Instead, the FHA adopted a racial policy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-abrams/a-government-offering-such-bounty-to-builders-and-lenders-could-have/) Charles Abrams > [Won't it be wonderful when black history and native American history and Jewish history and all of U.S. history is taught from one book.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/won-t-it-be-wonderful-when-black-history-and-native-american-history/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) ## More by Jay Grewal > [“That was when I realized we weren’t born to be slaves. It was ignorant for any man to think he could be the master…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/that-was-when-i-realized-we-weren-t-born-to-be-slaves-it-was-ignorant/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [“How a member of the church—one who had read the Good Lord’s bible—could sit so calmly and watch a man be led to his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/how-a-member-of-the-church-one-who-had-read-the-good-lord-s-bible/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [“Sometimes you don’t choose greatness, it chooses you. And when it does, it requires a certain level of understandin', courage and a degree of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/sometimes-you-don-t-choose-greatness-it-chooses-you-and-when-it-does/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [“He broke me down past the flesh, past the muscle, past the bone, down to my soul and in a loud provocation, he asked,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/he-broke-me-down-past-the-flesh-past-the-muscle-past-the-bone-down-to/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [“If you stay on this path as long as I have, you’ll soon learn that the road to providence leads right through perdition. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/if-you-stay-on-this-path-as-long-as-i-have-you-ll-soon-learn-that-the/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [“$1,200, That was the price of a man in those days. Now you can call him black, or you can call him a slave,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/1-200-that-was-the-price-of-a-man-in-those-days-now-you-can-call-him/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) > [“I couldn’t figure out if it was fate or faith that had brought me there. How funny those two words sounded when paired together.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/i-couldn-t-figure-out-if-it-was-fate-or-faith-that-had-brought-me/) [Jay Grewal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) [Explore all 8 Jay Grewal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/) ## More American history quotes > [Adam Clayton Powell's entire political career has to be looked at in the entire context of the American history and the history of, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/adam-clayton-powell-s-entire-political-career-has-to-be-looked-at-in/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-h-prescott/don-t-fire-until-you-see-the-whites-of-their-eyes/) [William H. Prescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-h-prescott/) > [“In December of 2007 human bones including skulls, which have been radiocarbon dated back to between 1304 and 1424, were found in a museum…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/captain-hank-bracker-seawater-one/in-december-of-2007-human-bones-including-skulls-which-have-been/) Captain Hank Bracker, "Seawater One > [John Lane has long been recognized as one of the South's finest poets and memoirists. This debut establishes him as one of our finest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-rash/john-lane-has-long-been-recognized-as-one-of-the-south-s-finest-poets/) [Ron Rash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-rash/) > [No man-made structure in all of American history has been hated so much, by so many, for so long, with such good reason, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/no-man-made-structure-in-all-of-american-history-has-been-hated-so/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [The problem that we have is that most Americans don't even study American history, let alone Pinochet, Mussolini, Hitler, Stalin and all these guys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-jones/the-problem-that-we-have-is-that-most-americans-don-t-even-study/) [Van Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-jones/) > [We must not falsely teach American history in our schools. We have a law requiring state textbook oversight to guard against frauds like Zinn,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-daniels/we-must-not-falsely-teach-american-history-in-our-schools-we-have-a/) [Mitch Daniels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-daniels/) > [The only thing we have to fear is fear itself-and possibly teh bogey man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-paulsen/the-only-thing-we-have-to-fear-is-fear-itself-and-possibly-teh-bogey/) [Pat Paulsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-paulsen/) > [“Thanks in part to the rapid mechanization of cotton production in the early 1940s, which ultimately threw millions of farm laborers out of work,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-t-patterson/thanks-in-part-to-the-rapid-mechanization-of-cotton-production-in-the/) [James T. Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-t-patterson/) > [“dark say: berthenia belle never forget the tongue hid name”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathleen-margaret/dark-say-berthenia-belle-never-forget-the-tongue-hid-name/) [Cathleen Margaret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathleen-margaret/) > [Throughout American history many of our social gains and much of our progress toward democracy were made possible by the active intervention of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-washington/throughout-american-history-many-of-our-social-gains-and-much-of-our/) [Harold Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-washington/) > [Modern Democrats aren't the first political party to abuse power - far from it. Obama isn'€™t the first president to abuse executive power -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harsanyi/modern-democrats-aren-t-the-first-political-party-to-abuse-power-far/) [David Harsanyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harsanyi/) > [Medicare and Social Security have created the healthiest and most financially secure generation of senior citizens in American history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-walsh/medicare-and-social-security-have-created-the-healthiest-and-most/) [Jim Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-walsh/) > [The school curriculum today, particularly American history, is a shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/the-school-curriculum-today-particularly-american-history-is-a-shame/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [“I used to walk out, at night, to the breakwater which divides the end of the harbor form the broad moor of the salt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-doty/i-used-to-walk-out-at-night-to-the-breakwater-which-divides-the-end/) [Mark Doty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-doty/) [Browse all 685 American history quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-history/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“But when they brought Sabira out, the crowd parted almost magically. A sea of hands rose faster than a swell and a bidding war commenced, amongst these civilized gentlemen who made their living off the backs of slaves.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jay Grewal" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-crowd-parted-almost-magically-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American history" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-crowd-parted-almost-magically-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ead/jay-grewal-46861_american-history_but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-cro_2494006.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ead/jay-grewal-46861_american-history_but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-cro_2494006.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ead/jay-grewal-46861_american-history_but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-cro_2494006.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“But when they brought Sabira out, the crowd parted almost magically. A sea of hands rose faster than a swell…” — Jay Grewal", "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": "Jay Grewal", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-grewal/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“But when they brought Sabira out,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-crowd-parted-almost-magically-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-grewal/but-when-they-brought-sabira-out-the-crowd-parted-almost-magically-a/#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 } } ] } ```