--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Because of the overwhelmingly white…" description: "\"“Because of the overwhelmingly white public face of the space program, the black engineers, scientists, and mathematicians who were deeply involved wit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/350/margot-lee-shetterly-8665_black-community_because-of-the-overwhelmingly-white-publ_1587199.jpg" --- # Because of the overwhelmingly white public face of the… ![“Because of the overwhelmingly white public face of the space program, the black engineers, scientists, and mathematicians who were deeply involved with the space race nevertheless lived in its shadows, even within the black community. Katherine” quote by Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/350/margot-lee-shetterly-8665_black-community_because-of-the-overwhelmingly-white-publ_1587199.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/350/margot-lee-shetterly-8665_black-community_because-of-the-overwhelmingly-white-publ_1587199.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/350/margot-lee-shetterly-8665_black-community_because-of-the-overwhelmingly-white-publ_1587199.jpg) > ““Because of the overwhelmingly white public face of the space program, the black engineers, scientists, and mathematicians who were deeply involved with the space race nevertheless lived in its shadows, even within the black community. Katherine”” [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The contributions of Black professionals to the space program were hidden due to racial bias, keeping them invisible even to their own community. **In simple terms:** Black engineers were ignored because of racism. Key Takeaway Recognize and celebrate hidden contributions. Themes race recognition science history visibility Mood reflective inspirational somber Type historical educational motivational When to use this quote - STEM education - museum exhibits - diversity initiatives - policy reforms Key Concepts systemic racism erasure representation Questions to Reflect On - How can we uncover more hidden histories? - What steps ensure inclusive recognition? A Different Perspective The narrative may overlook other marginalized groups’ contributions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black community](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-community/) [Black Engineers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-engineers-3520643/) [Race Lived](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/race-lived-3850581/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Scientists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientists/) [Space program](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space-program/) [Space race](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space-race/) ## Related quotes > [My dad worked with Mary Jackson very closely at one point. I knew Katherine Johnson as well. 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There were days when nobody knew what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-hewer/space-race-wanting-the-sky-wanting-the-horizon-wanting-to-travel/) [Elisabeth Hewer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-hewer/) > [“The only modern presidents to really succeed in education (in limited ways) were Eisenhower and Johnson; the former, because he had very specific needs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-cannon-gibney/the-only-modern-presidents-to-really-succeed-in-education-in-limited/) [Bruce Cannon Gibney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cannon-gibney/) > [“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/we-choose-to-go-to-the-moon-in-this-decade-and-do-the-other-things/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [During his last 18 months in office, Eisenhower flew to Asia, Europe, and Latin America and deployed his war hero's popularity to seek new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-beschloss/during-his-last-18-months-in-office-eisenhower-flew-to-asia-europe/) [Michael Beschloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-beschloss/) > [I have this theory about science fiction movies in that, when the space race sort of died, a lot of people sort of lost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-wright/i-have-this-theory-about-science-fiction-movies-in-that-when-the/) [Edgar Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-wright/) > [“Reach for the stars all you want, but anchor your soul in the soil.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/reach-for-the-stars-all-you-want-but-anchor-your-soul-in-the-soil/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [ A new space race has begun, and most Americans are not even aware of it. This race is not \[about\] political prestige or military… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-bova/a-new-space-race-has-begun-and-most-americans-are-not-even-aware-of/) [Ben Bova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-bova/) > [“Innovation is important, but what kind of a moronic species races to put a man on the moon, before it takes its homeless off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/innovation-is-important-but-what-kind-of-a-moronic-species-races-to/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [As the U.S. did during the Space Race, we must invest in our businesses and intellect to ensure America leads the clean energy economy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-tonko/as-the-u-s-did-during-the-space-race-we-must-invest-in-our-businesses/) [Paul Tonko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-tonko/) ## More by Margot Lee Shetterly > [“...internalized the Negro theorem of needing to be twice as good to get half as far.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/internalized-the-negro-theorem-of-needing-to-be-twice-as-good-to-get/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“black people frequently disqualified themselves even without the WHITES ONLY sign in view”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/black-people-frequently-disqualified-themselves-even-without-the/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“At the beginning of a decade when everything was beginning to seem possible, nothing seemed impossible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/at-the-beginning-of-a-decade-when-everything-was-beginning-to-seem/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [Every time you go to an airport and get on a plane, you are basically taking advantage of the work that was done at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/every-time-you-go-to-an-airport-and-get-on-a-plane-you-are-basically/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“It was the engineer who determined what problems to investigate, designed the experiments, and defined the assignments for the mathematicians.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/it-was-the-engineer-who-determined-what-problems-to-investigate/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“Like craftsmen in a medieval guild, NASA engineers hoped that one day their children would decide to take up the mantle of the profession…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/like-craftsmen-in-a-medieval-guild-nasa-engineers-hoped-that-one-day/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [For too long, history has imposed a binary condition on its black citizens: either nameless or renowned, menial or exceptional, passive recipients of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/for-too-long-history-has-imposed-a-binary-condition-on-its-black/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“a lifetime of stories”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/a-lifetime-of-stories/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“Insatiably curious about the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/insatiably-curious-about-the-world/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [The success of 'Hidden Figures' proves that people are interested in, hungry for, stories about transcendent human experiences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/the-success-of-hidden-figures-proves-that-people-are-interested-in/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“Early in her career at Langley, Dorthy Lee was interviewed for the Daily Press, in all probability by Virginia Biggins, the female reporter assigned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/early-in-her-career-at-langley-dorthy-lee-was-interviewed-for-the/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“Get the girl to check the numbers,' said the astronaut. If she says the numbers are good, he told them, I'm ready to go.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/get-the-girl-to-check-the-numbers-said-the-astronaut-if-she-says-the/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [My dad worked with Mary Jackson very closely at one point. I knew Katherine Johnson as well. They were all part of this group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/my-dad-worked-with-mary-jackson-very-closely-at-one-point-i-knew/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“War, technology, and social progress; it seemed that the second two always came with the first. The NACA’s work—more intense and”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/war-technology-and-social-progress-it-seemed-that-the-second-two/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) > [“The black female mathematicians who walked into Langley in 1943 would find themselves at the intersection of these great transformations, their sharp minds and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-lee-shetterly/the-black-female-mathematicians-who-walked-into-langley-in-1943-would/) [Margot Lee Shetterly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) [Explore all 79 Margot Lee Shetterly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-lee-shetterly/) ## More Black community quotes > [I think in black communities today we need to encourage a lot more cross racial organizing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-davis/i-think-in-black-communities-today-we-need-to-encourage-a-lot-more/) [Angela Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-davis/) > [I'm a black man that is proud to be black, and I want to help the black community, but I love all mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/common/i-m-a-black-man-that-is-proud-to-be-black-and-i-want-to-help-the/) [Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/common/) > [So I was really excited when I came to America about meeting black people. But it was a huge culture shock, because I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-turner-smith/so-i-was-really-excited-when-i-came-to-america-about-meeting-black/) [Jodie Turner-Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-turner-smith/) > [Within the black community, roughly 60 percent of children are born to single moms. Moms don't have the emotional wherewithal to deal with their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-dean-myers/within-the-black-community-roughly-60-percent-of-children-are-born-to/) [Walter Dean Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-dean-myers/) > [Who are the slumlords in the Black community? The so-called Jews. … Who is it sucking our blood in the Black community? A white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-farrakhan/who-are-the-slumlords-in-the-black-community-the-so-called-jews-who/) [Louis Farrakhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-farrakhan/) > [One of the prices that we pay for integration was the disintegration of the black community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-smith/one-of-the-prices-that-we-pay-for-integration-was-the-disintegration/) [Ed Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-smith/) > [As blacks, we need not be afraid that encouraging moraldevelopment, a conscience and guilt will prevent social action. Black children without the ability to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-p-comer-2/as-blacks-we-need-not-be-afraid-that-encouraging-moraldevelopment-a/) [James P Comer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-p-comer-2/) > [Anger in the black community towards Republicans is established and immutable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-beckel/anger-in-the-black-community-towards-republicans-is-established-and/) [Bob Beckel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-beckel/) > [The black community is broken up in general.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/candace-owens/the-black-community-is-broken-up-in-general/) [Candace Owens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/candace-owens/) > [Republicans think that the NAACP is the only voice in the black community. It is a voice in the black community. But it's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-watts/republicans-think-that-the-naacp-is-the-only-voice-in-the-black/) [J. C. 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Rap Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-rap-brown/) [Browse all 243 Black community quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-community/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Because of the overwhelmingly white public face of the space program, the black engineers, scientists, and mathematicians who were deeply involved with the space race nevertheless lived in its shadows, even within the black community. 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