--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think basically what The American…" description: "\"I think basically what The American People is about is that we've been here from the very beginning, and that has never ever been acknowledged in the h..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/kevin-sessums-9486_american-people_i-think-basically-what-the-american-peop_2579526.jpg" --- # I think basically what The American People is about is… ![“I think basically what The American People is about is that we've been here from the very beginning, and that has never ever been acknowledged in the history books. John Winthrop wasn't off the boat ten seconds before he passes a law that homosexuals should be hanged. And then he hung 'em…” quote by Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/kevin-sessums-9486_american-people_i-think-basically-what-the-american-peop_2579526.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/kevin-sessums-9486_american-people_i-think-basically-what-the-american-peop_2579526.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/kevin-sessums-9486_american-people_i-think-basically-what-the-american-peop_2579526.jpg) > “I think basically what The American People is about is that we've been here from the very beginning, and that has never ever been acknowledged in the history books. John Winthrop wasn't off the boat ten seconds before he passes a law that homosexuals should be hanged. And then he hung 'em, including an attempt to hang his own son when he found out he was gay.” [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) ## 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 highlights the omission of early American history and the harsh treatment of LGBTQ individuals, using John Winthrop as an example. **In simple terms:** History often ignores marginalized groups and past injustices. Key Takeaway Recognize and research hidden histories. Themes history LGBTQ rights colonial America justice memory Mood reflective somber Type historical critical When to use this quote - academic research - museum curation - educational curricula Key Concepts social exclusion legal oppression family conflict Questions to Reflect On - How can we uncover suppressed histories? - What responsibility do we have to acknowledge past injustices? A Different Perspective Historical narratives can be biased and incomplete. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-people/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Gay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gay/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [History books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history-books/) [Homosexual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/homosexual/) [Homosexuals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/homosexuals/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/son/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Under Islamic Law, homosexuals - men and women alike - must be killed. Women must be subservient. And people following other religions must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-carson/under-islamic-law-homosexuals-men-and-women-alike-must-be-killed/) [Benjamin Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-carson/) > [ \[ John\] Winthrop was the man who first said America was "a city upon a hill," which \[Ronald\] Reagan then appropriated. There are incidents… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/john-winthrop-was-the-man-who-first-said-america-was-a-city-upon-a/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [Our American past always speaks to us with two voices: the voice of the past, and the voice of the present. We are always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-j-boorstin/our-american-past-always-speaks-to-us-with-two-voices-the-voice-of/) [Daniel J. Boorstin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-j-boorstin/) > [The Diary of Samuel Sewall,' 'The Diary of John Winthrop,' these are easy for anyone to get their hands on. This was really common…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-eggers/the-diary-of-samuel-sewall-the-diary-of-john-winthrop-these-are-easy/) [Robert Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-eggers/) > [One of the most persistent images in American urbanism is that of the proverbial city on a hill, as first envisioned on these shores…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-filler/one-of-the-most-persistent-images-in-american-urbanism-is-that-of-the/) [Martin Filler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-filler/) > [If the Bible will not give eternal benefits to homosexuals, if they cannot inherit the kingdom of God, why, Klingenschmitt asked, on this world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-klingenschmitt/if-the-bible-will-not-give-eternal-benefits-to-homosexuals-if-they/) [Gordon Klingenschmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-klingenschmitt/) > [Even though probably the majority of homosexuals are not oriented towards young people, there is a significant number that are, especially the men...male homosexuality…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-lively/even-though-probably-the-majority-of-homosexuals-are-not-oriented/) [Scott Lively](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-lively/) > [The ... problem that confronts homosexuals is that they set out to win the love of a "real" man. If they succeed, they fail.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/the-problem-that-confronts-homosexuals-is-that-they-set-out-to-win/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [I want the same standard applied to homosexuals as is applied to heterosexuals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosie-o-donnell/i-want-the-same-standard-applied-to-homosexuals-as-is-applied-to/) [Rosie O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosie-o-donnell/) > [Hillary Clinton is funded by people who murder homosexuals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milo-yiannopoulos/hillary-clinton-is-funded-by-people-who-murder-homosexuals/) [Milo Yiannopoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milo-yiannopoulos/) > [People can tolerate two homosexuals they see leaving together, but the next day they're smiling, holding hands, tenderly embracing one another, then they cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/people-can-tolerate-two-homosexuals-they-see-leaving-together-but-the/) [Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/) > [Make no mistake: Homosexuals' human right must be protected. It is bigoted to discriminate against people based on their sexual orientation or preferences just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-sina/make-no-mistake-homosexuals-human-right-must-be-protected-it-is/) [Ali Sina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-sina/) > [Homosexuals in Russia live in peace, work, are promoted, receive national awards for their achievements in science, art or any other sphere, medals are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/homosexuals-in-russia-live-in-peace-work-are-promoted-receive/) [Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/) > [Benedict XVI kept saying that homosexuals are deviant. They're not deviant. They're deviant only if you say that anyone who is different from me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-shelby-spong/benedict-xvi-kept-saying-that-homosexuals-are-deviant-they-re-not/) [John Shelby Spong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-shelby-spong/) > [Homosexuals are not monogamous. They want to destroy the institution of marriage. It will destroy marriage. It will destroy the Earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dobson/homosexuals-are-not-monogamous-they-want-to-destroy-the-institution/) [James Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dobson/) ## More by Kevin Sessums > [ \[Calvin Trilllin\] is not writing about things that I can criticize. I can call these other people out for what I think they are… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/calvin-trilllin-is-not-writing-about-things-that-i-can-criticize-i/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [I get rejections from the New Yorker. When I had to give a little talk to the people graduating from the MBA program at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/i-get-rejections-from-the-new-yorker-when-i-had-to-give-a-little-talk/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [ \[Larry Kramer\] thinks Charles de Gaulle was gay. He thinks Max Schmeling was gay. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/larry-kramer-thinks-charles-de-gaulle-was-gay-he-thinks-max-schmeling/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [I was raped. That was a hard thing to write about. I never owned that part of it. Guys don't look at themselves as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/i-was-raped-that-was-a-hard-thing-to-write-about-i-never-owned-that/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [ Sometimes if I am walking down the street and thinking about my panoply of God, Ganesha, Parvati \[Ganesha's mother\], I say "Lucifer," because he… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/sometimes-if-i-am-walking-down-the-street-and-thinking-about-my/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [To some people, knowledge and science are everything. To me, God is everything I don't know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/to-some-people-knowledge-and-science-are-everything-to-me-god-is/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [I was not "shoe." That's a misuse of the term "shoe," which is derived from "white shoe."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/i-was-not-shoe-that-s-a-misuse-of-the-term-shoe-which-is-derived-from/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [My father always wanted me to be president of the United States, and his fallback position was that I not become a ward of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/my-father-always-wanted-me-to-be-president-of-the-united-states-and/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [I just so desperately wanted to be published in New Yorker, and I'd so desperately try to get something in it. But I'd always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/i-just-so-desperately-wanted-to-be-published-in-new-yorker-and-i-d-so/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [ We didn't know each other \[with Larry Kramer at Yale\], but we had a lot of mutual friends. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/we-didn-t-know-each-other-with-larry-kramer-at-yale-but-we-had-a-lot/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [ David Remnick \[the New Yorker's editor in chief\]is about as interested in anything gay as I am interested in anything to do with baseball.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/david-remnick-the-new-yorker-s-editor-in-chief-is-about-as-interested/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [ I believe we really became friends \[with Larry Kramer\] when we bonded at our fifteenth class reunion in 1972. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/i-believe-we-really-became-friends-with-larry-kramer-when-we-bonded/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [ One of the few nice things about \[time in Yale\] was you got to know people before there were labels on them, so you… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/one-of-the-few-nice-things-about-time-in-yale-was-you-got-to-know/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [I wrote an essay too, and mine started something like, "When I was asked to contribute to this book, I said, 'I could do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/i-wrote-an-essay-too-and-mine-started-something-like-when-i-was-asked/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) > [When one person mentors, two lives are changed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-sessums/when-one-person-mentors-two-lives-are-changed/) [Kevin Sessums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) [Explore all 72 Kevin Sessums quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-sessums/) ## More American people quotes > [America is a democracy and has no Hitler, but I am afraid for her future; there are hard times ahead for the American people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/america-is-a-democracy-and-has-no-hitler-but-i-am-afraid-for-her/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/for-as-much-as-government-can-do-and-must-do-it-is-ultimately-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Given a choice between two bald political candidates, the American people will vote for the less bald of the two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-gold/given-a-choice-between-two-bald-political-candidates-the-american/) Victor Gold > [When the American people saw the LA riots and crowds of Blacks cheering O.J. Simpson (who was acquitted by the almost all Black jury),…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-duke/when-the-american-people-saw-the-la-riots-and-crowds-of-blacks/) [David Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-duke/) > [In any event, it is one thing to assert, then or now, that the Iraq war was ill-advised. It is quite another to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-silberman/in-any-event-it-is-one-thing-to-assert-then-or-now-that-the-iraq-war/) [Laurence Silberman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-silberman/) > [Well look, CIA is an agency that has to collect intelligence, do operations. We have to take risks and it's important that we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-panetta/well-look-cia-is-an-agency-that-has-to-collect-intelligence-do/) [Leon Panetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-panetta/) > [I don't know a politician who enjoys fundraising. 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D. Hayworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-hayworth/) > [Hillary Clinton truly is sincere, but she has to connect more with the American people in terms of what she believes in and how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-pelosi/hillary-clinton-truly-is-sincere-but-she-has-to-connect-more-with-the/) [Nancy Pelosi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-pelosi/) > [The American people are incredibly generous and even playful when you open yourself up and feed the media beast until it goes away satisfied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krystal-ball/the-american-people-are-incredibly-generous-and-even-playful-when-you/) [Krystal Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krystal-ball/) [Browse all 2,233 American people quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-people/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think basically what The American People is about is that we've been here from the very beginning, and that has never ever been acknowledged in the history books. 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