---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think unless we have an honest…"
description: "\"I think unless we have an honest conversation about race and identity in this country, we're never going to get anywhere.\" — Justin Simien"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/justin-simien-4140_communication_i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-convers_2622871.jpg"
---

#  I think unless we have an honest conversation about race…

![“I think unless we have an honest conversation about race and identity in this country, we're never going to get anywhere.” quote by Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/justin-simien-4140_communication_i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-convers_2622871.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/justin-simien-4140_communication_i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-convers_2622871.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/justin-simien-4140_communication_i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-convers_2622871.jpg)

> “I think unless we have an honest conversation about race and identity in this country, we're never going to get anywhere.”

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Honest dialogue about race and identity is essential for progress.

**In simple terms:** We need open talks on race to move forward.

Key Takeaway

Engage in sincere conversations about race.

Themes

race identity progress

Mood

reflective hopeful

Type

motivational inspirational

When to use this quote

- politics
- community building
- education

Key Concepts

dialogue truth social change

Questions to Reflect On

- What prevents honest conversations about race?
- How can we foster safe spaces for dialogue?

A Different Perspective

Avoiding uncomfortable topics stalls growth.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Conversation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation/) [Conversation Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation-race-2125203/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Honest Conversation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honest-conversation/) [Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/identity/) [Never](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/never/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Race Identity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race-identity-2125204/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/)

## Related quotes

> [Truth is, some of you aren't interested in a real conversation about race - you'd rather go on the attack for anyone that dares…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tomi-lahren/truth-is-some-of-you-aren-t-interested-in-a-real-conversation-about/)

[Tomi Lahren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomi-lahren/)

> [I always think about race as a part of one's identity, not the whole of one's identity. You don't want it to be the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-han/i-always-think-about-race-as-a-part-of-one-s-identity-not-the-whole/)

[Jenny Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-han/)

> [In America, mixed-race identity tends to invite both curiosity and suspicion, largely because few have found a way to interrogate it without centering whiteness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenna-wortham/in-america-mixed-race-identity-tends-to-invite-both-curiosity-and/)

[Jenna Wortham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenna-wortham/)

> [We need a more substantive conversation around race relations and the way people of color are treated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-rapinoe/we-need-a-more-substantive-conversation-around-race-relations-and-the/)

[Megan Rapinoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-rapinoe/)

> [The conversation about race is inevitable. It's one that people know that we have to have and continue to have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jordan-peele/the-conversation-about-race-is-inevitable-it-s-one-that-people-know/)

[Jordan Peele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jordan-peele/)

> [I had a really honest conversation with my husband about equal pay because we met on a movie where he was paid more than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaya-scodelario/i-had-a-really-honest-conversation-with-my-husband-about-equal-pay/)

[Kaya Scodelario](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaya-scodelario/)

> [We can talk about courage and love and compassion until we sound like a greeting card store, but unless we're willing to have an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bren-brown/we-can-talk-about-courage-and-love-and-compassion-until-we-sound-like/)

[Brené Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bren-brown/)

> [I don't really like Phil Robertson and I think his opinion about gay marriage is stupid. But in a country where we want an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-norton/i-don-t-really-like-phil-robertson-and-i-think-his-opinion-about-gay/)

[Jim Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-norton/)

> [“...An honest conversation with anyone is a form of praying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-jacobs/an-honest-conversation-with-anyone-is-a-form-of-praying/)

[kate jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-jacobs/)

> [We need to make sure that we have an honest, honest conversation and that we engage honest practices around how racism operates in this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicia-garza/we-need-to-make-sure-that-we-have-an-honest-honest-conversation-and/)

[Alicia Garza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alicia-garza/)

> [The problem that we have in America now is, some people only see the positive stuff and wave off the toxic stuff, and some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-jones/the-problem-that-we-have-in-america-now-is-some-people-only-see-the/)

[Van Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-jones/)

> [In my experience—and I admit I didn't anticipate this—most blacks are delighted to have a 100-percent honest conversation with a white man about race.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jared-taylor/in-my-experience-and-i-admit-i-didn-t-anticipate-this-most-blacks-are/)

[Jared Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jared-taylor/)

> [What Donald Trump is going to bring to the table. He's going to bring straight, honest conversation and bring up topics that, while they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump-jr/what-donald-trump-is-going-to-bring-to-the-table-he-s-going-to-bring/)

[Donald Trump, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump-jr/)

> [I think that we need to have an honest conversation in this country. This idea that somehow we're beyond sexism, beyond racism is just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-booker/i-think-that-we-need-to-have-an-honest-conversation-in-this-country/)

[Cory Booker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-booker/)

> [“It's a fact— everyone is ignorant in some way or another. Ignorance is our deepest secret. And it is one of the scariest things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/it-s-a-fact-everyone-is-ignorant-in-some-way-or-another-ignorance-is/)

[Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/)

## More by Justin Simien

> [I don't doubt that straight white men have identity issues and identity complexes and struggle with defining themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-don-t-doubt-that-straight-white-men-have-identity-issues-and/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [I thought I was depressed because I wasn't a writer/director. I moved into a space where I'm a writer/director, my movie is a hit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-thought-i-was-depressed-because-i-wasn-t-a-writer-director-i-moved/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [I saw 'Beauty and the Beast' at eight years old in theatres and spent hours trying to recreate the majestic imagery of that story…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-saw-beauty-and-the-beast-at-eight-years-old-in-theatres-and-spent/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [I'm very interested in clans and the way people group together, and there's a lot of group shots. There's a lot of people in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-m-very-interested-in-clans-and-the-way-people-group-together-and/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [One of the things that I love about Robert Altman's movies is that, really, a Robert Altman movie is just a bunch of short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/one-of-the-things-that-i-love-about-robert-altman-s-movies-is-that/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [I am more than a black guy. I am a person, I'm storyteller, I'm a son, I'm a friend, so I am all those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-am-more-than-a-black-guy-i-am-a-person-i-m-storyteller-i-m-a-son-i/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [There are a plethora of ways of being black, just like there's many ways to being white.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/there-are-a-plethora-of-ways-of-being-black-just-like-there-s-many/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [The way Hollywood and TV is, black people don't have any choice but to see ourselves in white-dominated television shows and stories and movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/the-way-hollywood-and-tv-is-black-people-don-t-have-any-choice-but-to/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [Everybody else was quoting 2Pac, and I was running around with Green Day in my Walkman. Racially speaking, I wasn't cool or appropriate for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/everybody-else-was-quoting-2pac-and-i-was-running-around-with-green/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [Self-doubt is a constant companion for a chubby, gay, black boy born in the South.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/self-doubt-is-a-constant-companion-for-a-chubby-gay-black-boy-born-in/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [In the press, there's this desire for the black audience to be this monolithic thing that always responds to the same stars. That's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/in-the-press-there-s-this-desire-for-the-black-audience-to-be-this/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [It is a fine line between making fun of the right thing and making fun of the wrong thing. And the language oftentimes is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/it-is-a-fine-line-between-making-fun-of-the-right-thing-and-making/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [Hip-hop isn't dead by any means, but it's not something I define my black identity with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/hip-hop-isn-t-dead-by-any-means-but-it-s-not-something-i-define-my/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [I took an internship at Focus Features while I was in film school. I was really interested in how specialty movies were marketed and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-took-an-internship-at-focus-features-while-i-was-in-film-school-i/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

> [Racism is wrong, racism is very dangerous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/racism-is-wrong-racism-is-very-dangerous/)

[Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

[Explore all 115 Justin Simien quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/)

## More Communication quotes

> [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/)

[Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/)

> [The problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/)

[John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/)

> [We should have a conversation when we hang up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/we-should-have-a-conversation-when-we-hang-up/)

[Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/)

> [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/)

[Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/)

> [“To engage in dialogue is to serve others via whatever is real inside you; to engage in debate is to ultimately serve the illusions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oli-anderson/to-engage-in-dialogue-is-to-serve-others-via-whatever-is-real-inside/)

[Oli Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oli-anderson/)

> [What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/what-it-comes-down-to-for-me-is-this-will-the-technologies-of/)

[Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/)

> [In dialogue, there is opposition, yes, but no head-on collision. Smashing heads does not open minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/in-dialogue-there-is-opposition-yes-but-no-head-on-collision-smashing/)

[Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/)

> [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/)

[Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/)

> [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/)

[Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/)

> [I've been in a serious conversation with one of my children, and a fan has come up. I've been in a public bathroom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-reddy/i-ve-been-in-a-serious-conversation-with-one-of-my-children-and-a-fan/)

[Helen Reddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-reddy/)

> [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/)

[Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/)

> [Disability, in general, hasn't been included in the conversation about inclusivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-winston-george/disability-in-general-hasn-t-been-included-in-the-conversation-about/)

[Jason Winston George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-winston-george/)

> [“Women will be at least 50 percent of the communications community workforce … from executive suite to interns. Why? The “integrated” agency will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoram-wind/women-will-be-at-least-50-percent-of-the-communications-community/)

[Yoram Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoram-wind/)

> [There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. No. You are not allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-eubank-sr/there-are-certain-things-you-must-not-say-in-spite-of-the-fact-that/)

[Chris Eubank Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-eubank-sr/)

[Browse all 21,506 Communication quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I think unless we have an honest conversation about race and identity in this country, we're never going to get anywhere.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Justin Simien"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-conversation-about-race-and-identity/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Communication"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-conversation-about-race-and-identity/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/justin-simien-4140_communication_i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-convers_2622871.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/justin-simien-4140_communication_i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-convers_2622871.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/justin-simien-4140_communication_i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-convers_2622871.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I think unless we have an honest conversation about race and identity in this country, we're never going to…” — Justin Simien",
                "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": "Justin Simien",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I think unless we have an...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-conversation-about-race-and-identity/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-think-unless-we-have-an-honest-conversation-about-race-and-identity/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
