--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To never think about race means that it…" description: "\"To never think about race means that it doesn't really shape your life, or more specifically, the race that you have is not a burden to you.\" — Kimberl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/kimberle-williams-crenshaw-112_burden_to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it_3224833.jpg" --- # To never think about race means that it doesn't really… ![“To never think about race means that it doesn't really shape your life, or more specifically, the race that you have is not a burden to you.” quote by Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/kimberle-williams-crenshaw-112_burden_to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it_3224833.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/kimberle-williams-crenshaw-112_burden_to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it_3224833.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/kimberle-williams-crenshaw-112_burden_to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it_3224833.jpg) > “To never think about race means that it doesn't really shape your life, or more specifically, the race that you have is not a burden to you.” [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Denial of racial influence ignores how race shapes experiences and opportunities, often minimizing systemic bias. **In simple terms:** Ignoring race hides its impact. Key Takeaway Acknowledge race’s role in life. Themes race systemic bias identity intersectionality Mood reflective critical thoughtful Type analytical social commentary When to use this quote - policy making - education - personal reflection - community organizing Key Concepts social construct privilege structural inequality Questions to Reflect On - How does ignoring race affect your decisions? - What would change if you recognized racial influence? A Different Perspective Denial can perpetuate ignorance and hinder progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Burden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burden/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) ## Related quotes > [I think race has been a burden for black Americans. Being Muslim has also been a challenge because so many people do not understand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kareem-abdul-jabbar/i-think-race-has-been-a-burden-for-black-americans-being-muslim-has/) [Kareem Abdul-Jabbar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kareem-abdul-jabbar/) > [“Running your own race means embracing your dreams and shifting towards them and not letting anyone discourage you from your goals or dreams. Create…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-richards/running-your-own-race-means-embracing-your-dreams-and-shifting/) [Stephen Richards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-richards/) > [Among the words that can be all things to all men, the word "race" has a fair claim to being the most common, most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/among-the-words-that-can-be-all-things-to-all-men-the-word-race-has-a/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [There are important differences that mean we appreciate each other, not tolerate each other. Race creates this idea that there's this massive difference. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amma-asante/there-are-important-differences-that-mean-we-appreciate-each-other/) [Amma Asante](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amma-asante/) > [“Could be anyone. The Kin . I mean... it’s like calling yourselves the People. It’s what pretty much every race-name means. Except for Dalek.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/could-be-anyone-the-kin-i-mean-it-s-like-calling-yourselves-the/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [Race means family and all black people whether they like it or not, are family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kola-boof/race-means-family-and-all-black-people-whether-they-like-it-or-not/) [Kola Boof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kola-boof/) > [Regarding the idea of race, .. no agreement seems to exist about what race means. Race seems to embody a fact as simple and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/regarding-the-idea-of-race-no-agreement-seems-to-exist-about-what/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [“What neither Warren nor most of the rest of us recognized was that segregation was not, as Nirej Sekhorn put it, simply a "taint"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derrick-bell/what-neither-warren-nor-most-of-the-rest-of-us-recognized-was-that/) [Derrick Bell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derrick-bell/) > [I ask the clergy why don't I see myself represented in leadership? And I'm told, and this happens quite a bit, "We don't think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-emerson/i-ask-the-clergy-why-don-t-i-see-myself-represented-in-leadership-and/) [Michael Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-emerson/) > [I think the music defends myself. I don't think anyone should put a race on any genre. It's just a way of expressing yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/murda-beatz/i-think-the-music-defends-myself-i-don-t-think-anyone-should-put-a/) [Murda Beatz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/murda-beatz/) > [I think race in America is a huge one. That's something that needs to be confronted, certainly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tomi-lahren/i-think-race-in-america-is-a-huge-one-that-s-something-that-needs-to/) [Tomi Lahren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tomi-lahren/) > [Most people don't think about race as much as I do. They don't have to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/most-people-don-t-think-about-race-as-much-as-i-do-they-don-t-have-to/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [I love doing things that are titillating. I think race can be very funny, and I think I'm very comfortable discussing it and bringing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-rapaport/i-love-doing-things-that-are-titillating-i-think-race-can-be-very/) [Michael Rapaport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-rapaport/) > [Who knows what Yale thought it was getting when it hired Richard Rodriguez? The people who offered me the job thought there was nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-rodriguez/who-knows-what-yale-thought-it-was-getting-when-it-hired-richard/) [Richard Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-rodriguez/) > [When I go back home now, when I go back to Nigeria now, I get off the plane in Lagos and I just don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/when-i-go-back-home-now-when-i-go-back-to-nigeria-now-i-get-off-the/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) ## More by Kimberle Williams Crenshaw > [Black women's intersectional experiences of racism and sexism have been a central but forgotten dynamic in the unfolding of feminist and antiracist agendas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/black-women-s-intersectional-experiences-of-racism-and-sexism-have/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [Sexism isn't a one-size-fits-all phenomenon. It doesn't happen to black and white women the same way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/sexism-isn-t-a-one-size-fits-all-phenomenon-it-doesn-t-happen-to/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [People with problems are not problem people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/people-with-problems-are-not-problem-people/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [Our democracy cannot be left in the hands of those who would rather watch or participate in a train wreck than stop it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/our-democracy-cannot-be-left-in-the-hands-of-those-who-would-rather/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [Antiracists must acknowledge that patriarchy has long been a weapon of racism and cannot sit comfortably in any politic of racial transformation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/antiracists-must-acknowledge-that-patriarchy-has-long-been-a-weapon/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [We must all stand against both the continual, systematic, and structural racial inequities that normalize daily violence as well as against extreme acts of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/we-must-all-stand-against-both-the-continual-systematic-and/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [Intersectionality is an analytic sensibility, a way of thinking about identity and its relationship to power. Originally articulated on behalf of black women, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/intersectionality-is-an-analytic-sensibility-a-way-of-thinking-about/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [We might have to broaden our scope of how we think about where women are vulnerable, because different things make different women vulnerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/we-might-have-to-broaden-our-scope-of-how-we-think-about-where-women/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [... not all black women have silently acquiesced in sexism and misogyny within the African-American community. Indeed, many writers, activists, and other women have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/not-all-black-women-have-silently-acquiesced-in-sexism-and-misogyny/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [Ideally, schools should be supportive environments for students. Unfortunately, zero-tolerance policies tend to funnel vulnerable students out of schools and into prisons, low-income jobs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/ideally-schools-should-be-supportive-environments-for-students/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [Censorship is certainly not the answer to controversial material and is inconsistent with our most basic constitutional values.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/censorship-is-certainly-not-the-answer-to-controversial-material-and/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [The point of feminism is you shouldn't have to be a man to be treated with equal respect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/the-point-of-feminism-is-you-shouldn-t-have-to-be-a-man-to-be-treated/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [It's not about supplication, it's about power. It's not about asking, it's about demanding. It's not about convincing those who are currently in power,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/it-s-not-about-supplication-it-s-about-power-it-s-not-about-asking-it/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) > [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 we aren’t intersectional, some of us, the most vulnerable, are going to fall through the cracks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/if-we-aren-t-intersectional-some-of-us-the-most-vulnerable-are-going/) [Kimberle Williams Crenshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) [Explore all 61 Kimberle Williams Crenshaw quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/) ## More Burden quotes > [Everything I do is more memorable and I understand music more than ever now. It's not a burden to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seungri/everything-i-do-is-more-memorable-and-i-understand-music-more-than/) [Seungri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seungri/) > [I am at a point in my life where everything I have worked for starts to look like a burden, a weight on my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-abou-samra/i-am-at-a-point-in-my-life-where-everything-i-have-worked-for-starts/) Simone Abou Samra > [Trump's enduring appeal is a resource to be harnessed by the Republican Party, not a burden to be jettisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-devine/trump-s-enduring-appeal-is-a-resource-to-be-harnessed-by-the/) [Miranda Devine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-devine/) > [We want to free our citizens from the burden of excessive paper documents in every office. We want paperless transactions. We will set up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/narendra-modi/we-want-to-free-our-citizens-from-the-burden-of-excessive-paper/) [Narendra Modi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/narendra-modi/) > [We cannot go back in time and change the past, but we can repent. The Savior can wipe away our tears of regret and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/we-cannot-go-back-in-time-and-change-the-past-but-we-can-repent-the/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [The world around us is an increasingly hostile and sinful place. Occasionally that splashes onto us, and perhaps, in the case of a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-world-around-us-is-an-increasingly-hostile-and-sinful-place/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > ['Inequality' has become the political theme/slogan of our time in both Europe and the U.S., yet political leaders do not even bother to consider…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-singer/inequality-has-become-the-political-theme-slogan-of-our-time-in-both/) [Paul Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-singer/) > [With those who are willing to join, let us cooperate to reduce the burden of arms, to strengthen the structure of peace, to lift…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-m-nixon/with-those-who-are-willing-to-join-let-us-cooperate-to-reduce-the/) [Richard M. Nixon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-m-nixon/) > [“What a burden it must be to know all the terrible things you've done and support it with arms unfit to carry it all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-weikel/what-a-burden-it-must-be-to-know-all-the-terrible-things-you-ve-done/) [K. Weikel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-weikel/) > [And that, in a way, was the burden of being a philosopher: one knew what one had to do, but it was so often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-mccall-smith/and-that-in-a-way-was-the-burden-of-being-a-philosopher-one-knew-what/) [Alexander McCall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-mccall-smith/) > [Wherever I am, I see the yoke on women in some form or another. On some it sits easy for they are but beasts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-may-alcott/wherever-i-am-i-see-the-yoke-on-women-in-some-form-or-another-on-some/) [Abby May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-may-alcott/) > [It's a burden trying to keep a secret. It's hard. It probably takes more out of you trying to hold it and keep it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magic-johnson/it-s-a-burden-trying-to-keep-a-secret-it-s-hard-it-probably-takes/) [Magic Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magic-johnson/) > [I've always liked artists like Chris Burden, who would take performances, put them in galleries, and then do things that were on the edge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-blaine/i-ve-always-liked-artists-like-chris-burden-who-would-take/) [David Blaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-blaine/) > [Our office...subjects us to great burdens and labors, dangers and temptations, with little reward or gratitude from the world. But Christ himself will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/our-office-subjects-us-to-great-burdens-and-labors-dangers-and/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [The debt immense of endless gratitude, So burthensome, still paying, still to owe; Forgetful what from him I still receivd, And understood not that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/the-debt-immense-of-endless-gratitude-so-burthensome-still-paying/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) [Browse all 2,567 Burden quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/burden/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To never think about race means that it doesn't really shape your life, or more specifically, the race that you have is not a burden to you.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kimberle Williams Crenshaw" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it-doesn-t-really-shape-your/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Burden" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it-doesn-t-really-shape-your/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/kimberle-williams-crenshaw-112_burden_to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it_3224833.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/kimberle-williams-crenshaw-112_burden_to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it_3224833.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ad0/kimberle-williams-crenshaw-112_burden_to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it_3224833.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To never think about race means that it doesn't really shape your life, or more specifically, the race that…” — Kimberle Williams Crenshaw", "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": "Kimberle Williams Crenshaw", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To never think about race means...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it-doesn-t-really-shape-your/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberle-williams-crenshaw/to-never-think-about-race-means-that-it-doesn-t-really-shape-your/#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 } } ] } ```