--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't want there to be this separation…" description: "\"I don't want there to be this separation between the rich and poor. I may be part of the three percent because I've been fortunate and done well for my..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/074/marlon-wayans-7828_about_i-don-t-want-there-to-be-this-separation_160300.jpg" --- # I don't want there to be this separation between the rich… ![“I don't want there to be this separation between the rich and poor. I may be part of the three percent because I've been fortunate and done well for myself, but I will never forget about the 97 percent. That was me growing up. I was so poor I dreamt about being just 'regular poor,' not 'poor, poor.'” quote by Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/074/marlon-wayans-7828_about_i-don-t-want-there-to-be-this-separation_160300.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/074/marlon-wayans-7828_about_i-don-t-want-there-to-be-this-separation_160300.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/074/marlon-wayans-7828_about_i-don-t-want-there-to-be-this-separation_160300.jpg) > “I don't want there to be this separation between the rich and poor. I may be part of the three percent because I've been fortunate and done well for myself, but I will never forget about the 97 percent. That was me growing up. I was so poor I dreamt about being just 'regular poor,' not 'poor, poor.'” [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He acknowledges his wealth but remains connected to his humble roots, remembering his past poverty. **In simple terms:** He’s rich yet remembers being poor. Key Takeaway Stay humble and advocate for the less fortunate. Themes wealth humility social responsibility Mood reflective determined Type social inspirational When to use this quote - philanthropy - policy advocacy - public speaking - personal storytelling Key Concepts empathy class consciousness Questions to Reflect On - How can wealth be used responsibly? - What actions can bridge the rich‑poor gap? A Different Perspective Wealth may blind him to systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [About](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about/) [Because](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/because/) [Been](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/been/) [Being](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being/) [Between](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/between/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Dreamt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dreamt/) [Forget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forget/) [Fortunate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fortunate/) [Growing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing/) [Growing Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-poor-1608312/) [Growing up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/growing-up/) [Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Myself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/myself/) [Never](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/never/) [Never forget](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/never-forget/) [Part](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/part/) [Percent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/percent/) [Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poor/) [Poor Percent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poor-percent-1758496/) [Poor Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poor-poor/) [Regular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regular/) [Regular Poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regular-poor-1758495/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Rich and poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich-and-poor/) [Rich poor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich-poor/) [Separation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/separation/) [Three](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three/) [Up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/up/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Well](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/well/) [Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will/) ## Related quotes > [I have real good parents. They poor. They have regular, poor jobs and what not. They real good people and what not; I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cardi-b/i-have-real-good-parents-they-poor-they-have-regular-poor-jobs-and/) [Cardi B](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cardi-b/) > [Growing up in a very poor orphanage in Ukraine, there wasn't much food.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oksana-masters/growing-up-in-a-very-poor-orphanage-in-ukraine-there-wasn-t-much-food/) [Oksana Masters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oksana-masters/) > [When we were growing up, we were so poor that our heritage was the only thing we had. Mama would say, 'Kids, pour more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-judd/when-we-were-growing-up-we-were-so-poor-that-our-heritage-was-the/) [Ashley Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-judd/) > [“There are few advantages to growing up poor, and not having money for therapy is the biggest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-lawson/there-are-few-advantages-to-growing-up-poor-and-not-having-money-for/) [Jenny Lawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-lawson/) > [Growing up poor, I didn't even have a lunch to take to school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-foreman/growing-up-poor-i-didn-t-even-have-a-lunch-to-take-to-school/) [George Foreman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-foreman/) > [Despite growing up in very poor circumstances, my father had big dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vivek-murthy/despite-growing-up-in-very-poor-circumstances-my-father-had-big-dreams/) [Vivek Murthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vivek-murthy/) > [Growing up, I was poor. In college, I was poor. I never had anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-jones/growing-up-i-was-poor-in-college-i-was-poor-i-never-had-anything/) [Jon Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-jones/) > [I think that growing up very poor in a very wealthy town gave me a sense of being an outsider, and I hated it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moby/i-think-that-growing-up-very-poor-in-a-very-wealthy-town-gave-me-a/) [Moby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moby/) > [Growing up poor taught me a lot. It instilled in me the ethics of hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chieh-huang/growing-up-poor-taught-me-a-lot-it-instilled-in-me-the-ethics-of-hard/) [Chieh Huang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chieh-huang/) > [I am not poor. Poor are those who desire many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/i-am-not-poor-poor-are-those-who-desire-many-things/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [When a family is poor, everyone is poor, and there is huge solidarity. People will take a bullet for you. But when one makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuel-adebayor/when-a-family-is-poor-everyone-is-poor-and-there-is-huge-solidarity/) [Emmanuel Adebayor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuel-adebayor/) > [America's vast population of working poor can only get so poor before even Walmart is out of reach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-packer/america-s-vast-population-of-working-poor-can-only-get-so-poor-before/) [George Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-packer/) > [I was pretty poor for a long time. Not \*poor\* poor. But college student poor. I lived for most of my adult life living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/i-was-pretty-poor-for-a-long-time-not-poor-poor-but-college-student/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [God has no need of your money, but the poor have. You give it to the poor, and God receives it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/god-has-no-need-of-your-money-but-the-poor-have-you-give-it-to-the/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [“I'm called 'the poorest president', but I don't feel poor. Poor people are those who only work to try to keep an expensive lifestyle,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-mujica/i-m-called-the-poorest-president-but-i-don-t-feel-poor-poor-people/) [Jose Mujica](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-mujica/) ## More by Marlon Wayans > [I sound like Jesse Jackson or Martin Luther King, but I honestly feel like the world is mature enough. And, for me, I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/i-sound-like-jesse-jackson-or-martin-luther-king-but-i-honestly-feel/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [I think it's perfectly fine to kiss your son on the lips. If you are a father and you adore your child that u…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/i-think-it-s-perfectly-fine-to-kiss-your-son-on-the-lips-if-you-are-a/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [I'm the most inappropriate dad. I curse in front of my kids and their friends. I let my kids watch R-rated movies. I'll walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/i-m-the-most-inappropriate-dad-i-curse-in-front-of-my-kids-and-their/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [I like to work and there's no movies for actors, period, especially black actors. When white actors are like, 'Man, there's no work out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/i-like-to-work-and-there-s-no-movies-for-actors-period-especially/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [Tears if joy are always the best tears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/tears-if-joy-are-always-the-best-tears/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [I'd like to see a ghost. It would confirm there's an afterlife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/i-d-like-to-see-a-ghost-it-would-confirm-there-s-an-afterlife/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [Good friends I don't need to talk to everyday but when I see you it's like I just talked to you yesterday. Y'all know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/good-friends-i-don-t-need-to-talk-to-everyday-but-when-i-see-you-it-s/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [You can't control people's actions BUT you always control YOUR reactions to people. All ways love is always love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/you-can-t-control-people-s-actions-but-you-always-control-your/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [I've got Democratic skin, but a Republican pocket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/i-ve-got-democratic-skin-but-a-republican-pocket/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [Sometimes they try to put you inside a box, but I look at my filmography and I've been able to do a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/sometimes-they-try-to-put-you-inside-a-box-but-i-look-at-my/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [Don't bother don't stress don't worry...Just be...And most of all be happy!!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/don-t-bother-don-t-stress-don-t-worry-just-be-and-most-of-all-be-happy/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [Whatever role I do, I've got to do the work. It all starts with the body. Get that ready and everything else follows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/whatever-role-i-do-i-ve-got-to-do-the-work-it-all-starts-with-the/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [Success is not a destination, but the road that you're on. Being successful means that you're working hard and walking your walk every day.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/success-is-not-a-destination-but-the-road-that-you-re-on-being/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [If you could cross a lion and a monkey, that's what I'd be, because monkeys are funny and lions are strong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/if-you-could-cross-a-lion-and-a-monkey-that-s-what-i-d-be-because/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) > [I don't think of myself as a comedian, but as an artist, a scientist and chemist who just happens to be funny. I started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marlon-wayans/i-don-t-think-of-myself-as-a-comedian-but-as-an-artist-a-scientist/) [Marlon Wayans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) [Explore all 87 Marlon Wayans quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marlon-wayans/) ## More About quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [I talk to my mates about our kids, being too tired and being worn out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-willoughby/i-talk-to-my-mates-about-our-kids-being-too-tired-and-being-worn-out/) [Holly Willoughby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-willoughby/) > [With 'Pretty Girls,' I saw the opportunity to talk not just about crime but what crime leaves behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/with-pretty-girls-i-saw-the-opportunity-to-talk-not-just-about-crime/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [I write about presidents. That means I write about guys - so far. I'm interested in the people closest to them, the people they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/i-write-about-presidents-that-means-i-write-about-guys-so-far-i-m/) [Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/) > [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/) [Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/) > [I learned a lot about myself at Oakmont.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-lowry/i-learned-a-lot-about-myself-at-oakmont/) [Shane Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-lowry/) > [I don't think about the press or the crowds or the other leaders of the race. The focus is only on myself. 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