--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Most of those Negroes have been given…" description: "\"Most of those Negroes have been given those jobs by the white political machine, and they serve no other function other than to, as window dressing.\" —..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/682/malcolm-x-213_dressings_most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-th_2391038.jpg" --- # Most of those Negroes have been given those jobs by the… ![“Most of those Negroes have been given those jobs by the white political machine, and they serve no other function other than to, as window dressing.” quote by Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/682/malcolm-x-213_dressings_most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-th_2391038.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/682/malcolm-x-213_dressings_most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-th_2391038.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/682/malcolm-x-213_dressings_most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-th_2391038.jpg) > “Most of those Negroes have been given those jobs by the white political machine, and they serve no other function other than to, as window dressing.” [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Some Black workers are placed in token roles by white power structures, serving only as symbolic representation. **In simple terms:** Black employees sometimes serve only as symbolic tokens. Key Takeaway Challenge tokenism and demand substantive inclusion. Themes race employment politics Mood critical hopeful Type activism analysis When to use this quote - hiring practices - corporate diversity initiatives - community organizing Key Concepts tokenism systemic racism representation Questions to Reflect On - What steps can organizations take to move beyond tokenism? - How does tokenism affect community trust? A Different Perspective Token roles may perpetuate inequality rather than resolve it. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Political](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/political/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Window dressing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/window-dressing/) ## Related quotes > [I had wanted to be a dentist, but ended up being a chef. I think I've always had a fascination for jobs that have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gino-d-acampo/i-had-wanted-to-be-a-dentist-but-ended-up-being-a-chef-i-think-i-ve/) [Gino D'Acampo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gino-d-acampo/) > [Children are not simply commodities to be herded into line and trained for the jobs that white people who live in segregated neighborhoods have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-kozol/children-are-not-simply-commodities-to-be-herded-into-line-and/) [Jonathan Kozol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-kozol/) > [These books ain't window dressing. I think Machiavelli's the most sophisticated writer outside of Shakespeare. Way ahead of his time. Such a manipulative person.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tyson/these-books-ain-t-window-dressing-i-think-machiavelli-s-the-most/) [Mike Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tyson/) > [But, you know, there's another group that really runs the show. It's very shadowy, just as you've described... Those of us in the Congress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virgil-goode/but-you-know-there-s-another-group-that-really-runs-the-show-it-s/) [Virgil Goode](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virgil-goode/) > [“Everything else is perspective and window dressing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-robert-cargill/everything-else-is-perspective-and-window-dressing/) [C. Robert Cargill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-robert-cargill/) > [The White House comes out and says it's going to do a major study of the effects on preschool-age children using Ritalin, Prozac and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/the-white-house-comes-out-and-says-it-s-going-to-do-a-major-study-of/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [No choice maxims - we Stoics don't practice that kind of window dressing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/no-choice-maxims-we-stoics-don-t-practice-that-kind-of-window-dressing/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [My decorating and renovation skills are nil - indeed, I once used a shower curtain from Pottery Barn as 'window dressing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candace-bushnell/my-decorating-and-renovation-skills-are-nil-indeed-i-once-used-a/) [Candace Bushnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candace-bushnell/) > [Legal reform has significant dangers: changing only the window-dressing of harmful systems but leaving the violence of the systems in tact, failing to provide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-spade/legal-reform-has-significant-dangers-changing-only-the-window/) [Dean Spade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-spade/) > [People make things happen. All the rest is just window dressing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/people-make-things-happen-all-the-rest-is-just-window-dressing/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [Your choice of window dressing is all about the three Ps, privacy, practicality and personal style.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-clarke/your-choice-of-window-dressing-is-all-about-the-three-ps-privacy/) [George Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-clarke/) > [The only possible way out for the white man is to give us Negroes some land of our own; let us get out, get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/the-only-possible-way-out-for-the-white-man-is-to-give-us-negroes/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Negroes just can't judge each other according to color, because we are all colors, all complexions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/negroes-just-can-t-judge-each-other-according-to-color-because-we-are/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Good education, housing and jobs are imperatives for the Negroes, and I shall support them in their fight to win these objectives, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/good-education-housing-and-jobs-are-imperatives-for-the-negroes-and-i/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Those type of whites who are always going to jail with Negroes are the ones who tell Negroes to be loving and be kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/those-type-of-whites-who-are-always-going-to-jail-with-negroes-are/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) ## More by Malcolm X > [If Christianity had asserted itself in Germany, six million Jews would have lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/if-christianity-had-asserted-itself-in-germany-six-million-jews-would/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [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/) > [American civil rights leader, Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? Lynching is a murder. For the past four hundred years our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/american-civil-rights-leader-where-do-we-go-from-here-chaos-or/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Be nonviolent only with those who are nonviolent to you. And when you can bring me a nonviolent racist, bring me a nonviolent segregationist,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/be-nonviolent-only-with-those-who-are-nonviolent-to-you-and-when-you/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [You can't legislate good will - that comes through education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/you-can-t-legislate-good-will-that-comes-through-education/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Truth is on the side of the oppressed today, it's against the oppressor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/truth-is-on-the-side-of-the-oppressed-today-it-s-against-the-oppressor/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Those type of whites who are always going to jail with Negroes are the ones who tell Negroes to be loving and be kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/those-type-of-whites-who-are-always-going-to-jail-with-negroes-are/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [We Muslims believe that the white race, which is guilty of having oppressed and exploited and enslaved our people here in America, should and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/we-muslims-believe-that-the-white-race-which-is-guilty-of-having/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [I mean a real police state just to get a token recognition of a law. It take, it took, I think, 15,000 troops and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-mean-a-real-police-state-just-to-get-a-token-recognition-of-a-law/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Like Samson, I am ready to pull down the white man's temple, knowing full well that I will be destroyed by the falling rubble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/like-samson-i-am-ready-to-pull-down-the-white-man-s-temple-knowing/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Any negro who occupies a position that was given to him by the white man, if you analyze his function, his function never enables…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/any-negro-who-occupies-a-position-that-was-given-to-him-by-the-white/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Stumbling is not falling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/stumbling-is-not-falling/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [God is going to punish the white man for his misdeeds toward black people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/god-is-going-to-punish-the-white-man-for-his-misdeeds-toward-black/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [Much of what I say might sound like it's stirring up trouble, but it's the truth!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/much-of-what-i-say-might-sound-like-it-s-stirring-up-trouble-but-it-s/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) > [I believe in the brotherhood of all men, but I don't believe in wasting brotherhood on anyone who doesn't want to practice it with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/i-believe-in-the-brotherhood-of-all-men-but-i-don-t-believe-in/) [Malcolm X](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) [Explore all 891 Malcolm X quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/) ## More Dressings quotes > [Meanwhile someone is shining my head to get it dry to attach my top-hat to my head with toupee tape. I get into microphone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tituss-burgess/meanwhile-someone-is-shining-my-head-to-get-it-dry-to-attach-my-top/) [Tituss Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tituss-burgess/) > [I think dressing up or down should be a creative experience. Exciting. Fun. For me the key to personal style lies in accessories. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-apfel/i-think-dressing-up-or-down-should-be-a-creative-experience-exciting/) [Iris Apfel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-apfel/) > [When the idea came up, (Newman's Own) I said, "Are you crazy? Stick my face on the label of salad dressing?" And then, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-newman/when-the-idea-came-up-newman-s-own-i-said-are-you-crazy-stick-my-face/) [Paul Newman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-newman/) > [Everything was set for us to play a real good game. Then we left the dressing room and everything went to hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curt-fraser/everything-was-set-for-us-to-play-a-real-good-game-then-we-left-the/) Curt Fraser > [One of the really bad things you can do to your writing is to dress up the vocabulary, looking for long words because you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/one-of-the-really-bad-things-you-can-do-to-your-writing-is-to-dress/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [My parents are actors as well, so I grew up around that world. It was always a very romantic, mythical world. They did a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phoebe-fox/my-parents-are-actors-as-well-so-i-grew-up-around-that-world-it-was/) [Phoebe Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phoebe-fox/) > [Don't ask me about emotions in the Welsh dressing room. I'm someone who cries when he watches Little House on the Prairie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-norster/don-t-ask-me-about-emotions-in-the-welsh-dressing-room-i-m-someone/) Bob Norster > [I'm pretty awesome at making salad dressings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lupita-nyong-o/i-m-pretty-awesome-at-making-salad-dressings/) [Lupita Nyong'o](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lupita-nyong-o/) > [It's like a jar of salad dressing sitting on a shelf... most of the seasoning settles to the bottom of the bottle. But when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/it-s-like-a-jar-of-salad-dressing-sitting-on-a-shelf-most-of-the/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [East Hampton happens to have been the first place in the world where I was a star, a real star with a star pasted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-gabor/east-hampton-happens-to-have-been-the-first-place-in-the-world-where/) [Eva Gabor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-gabor/) > [Winter dressing is all about having chic outerwear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-kotsiopoulos/winter-dressing-is-all-about-having-chic-outerwear/) [George Kotsiopoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-kotsiopoulos/) > [Long before feminism made fashion a guilty pleasure, my first experience of the sisterhood among strangers took place in a communal dressing room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-thurman/long-before-feminism-made-fashion-a-guilty-pleasure-my-first/) [Judith Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-thurman/) > [ All that ever holds somebody back, I think, is fear. For a minute I had fear. \[Then\] I went into the \[dressing\] room and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lady-gaga/all-that-ever-holds-somebody-back-i-think-is-fear-for-a-minute-i-had/) [Lady Gaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lady-gaga/) > [I've been dressing Renee on the red carpet for the past three years, ... I think she always looks great. She has the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolina-herrera/i-ve-been-dressing-renee-on-the-red-carpet-for-the-past-three-years-i/) [Carolina Herrera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolina-herrera/) > [It is very discouraging to be in a team with white athletes. On the track you are Tommie Smith, the fastest man in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommie-smith/it-is-very-discouraging-to-be-in-a-team-with-white-athletes-on-the/) Tommie Smith Browse all 492 Dressings quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Most of those Negroes have been given those jobs by the white political machine, and they serve no other function other than to, as window dressing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Malcolm X" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-those-jobs-by-the-white/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Dressings" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-those-jobs-by-the-white/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/682/malcolm-x-213_dressings_most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-th_2391038.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/682/malcolm-x-213_dressings_most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-th_2391038.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/682/malcolm-x-213_dressings_most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-th_2391038.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Most of those Negroes have been given those jobs by the white political machine, and they serve no other…” — Malcolm X", "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": "Malcolm X", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-x/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Most of those Negroes have been...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-those-jobs-by-the-white/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-x/most-of-those-negroes-have-been-given-those-jobs-by-the-white/#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 } } ] } ```