--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In trying to cross over to the…" description: "\"In trying to cross over to the mainstream, some people stopped writing what they witnessed.\" — Melvin Van Peebles" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/102/melvin-van-peebles-8573_over_in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstrea_1113124.jpg" --- # In trying to cross over to the mainstream, some people… ![“In trying to cross over to the mainstream, some people stopped writing what they witnessed.” quote by Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/102/melvin-van-peebles-8573_over_in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstrea_1113124.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/102/melvin-van-peebles-8573_over_in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstrea_1113124.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/102/melvin-van-peebles-8573_over_in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstrea_1113124.jpg) > “In trying to cross over to the mainstream, some people stopped writing what they witnessed.” [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mainstream pressures can silence authentic voices and lived experiences. **In simple terms:** Mainstream can mute truth. Key Takeaway Preserve authenticity. Themes authenticity censorship artistic integrity Mood determined hopeful Type artistic activist When to use this quote - publishing - broadcasting - social media Key Concepts media studies sociology creative writing Questions to Reflect On - How to stay true under pressure? - What platforms support authentic voices? A Different Perspective Mainstream can also amplify important stories. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [The world is full of people who have stopped listening to themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-world-is-full-of-people-who-have-stopped-listening-to-themselves/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [I mean, when we did 'Families At War,' on Saturday night prime time, people said we were mainstream then. But it wasn't in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vic-reeves/i-mean-when-we-did-families-at-war-on-saturday-night-prime-time/) [Vic Reeves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vic-reeves/) > [Non-mainstream people seem to balk at the idea of 12-step. A lot of us think 12-step recovery means sitting in a church basement full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bucky-sinister/non-mainstream-people-seem-to-balk-at-the-idea-of-12-step-a-lot-of-us/) [Bucky Sinister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bucky-sinister/) > [I'm interested in people who are dwelling outside the mainstream. And very often, those people happen to be woman of color.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-nottage/i-m-interested-in-people-who-are-dwelling-outside-the-mainstream-and/) [Lynn Nottage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-nottage/) > [We didn't get agitated over the closure of blacksmiths when people stopped riding horses and started driving cars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cleverly/we-didn-t-get-agitated-over-the-closure-of-blacksmiths-when-people/) [James Cleverly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cleverly/) > [A lot of people dabbling means Buddhism has come into the mainstream, where people begin to use these terms and ideas, and they become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sakyong-mipham/a-lot-of-people-dabbling-means-buddhism-has-come-into-the-mainstream/) [Sakyong Mipham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sakyong-mipham/) > [“Historical fact: people stopped being human in 1913.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/historical-fact-people-stopped-being-human-in-1913/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) > [I'll put it to you like this: You can only go as mainstream as people will let you go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lecrae/i-ll-put-it-to-you-like-this-you-can-only-go-as-mainstream-as-people/) [Lecrae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lecrae/) > [When bands come from that underground scene and go into the mainstream, people just hate it. And it blows my mind. If you're saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-jane-grace/when-bands-come-from-that-underground-scene-and-go-into-the/) [Laura Jane Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-jane-grace/) > [We've always had anti-Americans. We've always had left-wing protesters and so forth, but they were always off to the left kooks. They were always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/we-ve-always-had-anti-americans-we-ve-always-had-left-wing-protesters/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [No artist is well served in thinking what will happen to their works. The best one can hope is that they'll enter the mainstream,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twyla-tharp/no-artist-is-well-served-in-thinking-what-will-happen-to-their-works/) [Twyla Tharp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twyla-tharp/) > [It's about the people, who have stopped believing because the cup of evil has run over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dmitri-shostakovich/it-s-about-the-people-who-have-stopped-believing-because-the-cup-of/) [Dmitri Shostakovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dmitri-shostakovich/) > [I think of my books as mainstream and that's were most people who read them look for them in book stores.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-m-auel/i-think-of-my-books-as-mainstream-and-that-s-were-most-people-who/) [Jean M. Auel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-m-auel/) > [“Not only have people stopped trying to be attractive when they are out among other people, but they are no longer even trying not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/not-only-have-people-stopped-trying-to-be-attractive-when-they-are/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [I think when you make something that is non-mainstream and people don't have automatic way of consuming, like you don't have a big star,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiran-rao/i-think-when-you-make-something-that-is-non-mainstream-and-people-don/) [Kiran Rao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiran-rao/) ## More by Melvin Van Peebles > [I went to a number of schools when I was a kid on the south side of Chicago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/i-went-to-a-number-of-schools-when-i-was-a-kid-on-the-south-side-of/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [Music or sound in a film is a character as important as another character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/music-or-sound-in-a-film-is-a-character-as-important-as-another/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [I'm not a normal director. You can't look at me that way. What's kept me alive is my technical skill at doing other things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/i-m-not-a-normal-director-you-can-t-look-at-me-that-way-what-s-kept/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [Don't ask me something if you don't want to know. Because I will tell you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/don-t-ask-me-something-if-you-don-t-want-to-know-because-i-will-tell/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [I was a trader for a company. That's different from the brokers who we sort of disdain as sort of just errand boys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/i-was-a-trader-for-a-company-that-s-different-from-the-brokers-who-we/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [I'm pretty much a loner. That's not good, bad, or indifferent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/i-m-pretty-much-a-loner-that-s-not-good-bad-or-indifferent/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [After 'Don't Play Us Cheap,' I got very busy with theater and Wall Street.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/after-don-t-play-us-cheap-i-got-very-busy-with-theater-and-wall-street/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [The studios didn't really take independent films seriously, till 'Sweetback' was such a financial success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/the-studios-didn-t-really-take-independent-films-seriously-till/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [Over time, you accumulate a lot of life material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/over-time-you-accumulate-a-lot-of-life-material/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [I intend to stay dangerous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/i-intend-to-stay-dangerous/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [Whitey is uptight about offending blacks without really knowing what offends blacks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/whitey-is-uptight-about-offending-blacks-without-really-knowing-what/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [I said to my kids, 'Learn the business of America if you want to be an artist in America. The rest of that stuff,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/i-said-to-my-kids-learn-the-business-of-america-if-you-want-to-be-an/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [If you give people something they want, they'll come and see it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/if-you-give-people-something-they-want-they-ll-come-and-see-it/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [I do what I want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/i-do-what-i-want-to-do/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) > [Music - some people just don't know that part of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/music-some-people-just-don-t-know-that-part-of-me/) [Melvin Van Peebles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) [Explore all 79 Melvin Van Peebles quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/) ## More Over quotes > [Sometimes, when full and in fear that I will continue to eat unwanted food just because it's staring at me, I will place my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-nichols/sometimes-when-full-and-in-fear-that-i-will-continue-to-eat-unwanted/) [Rachel Nichols](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-nichols/) > [People will pay a price for putting political obstruction over progress in a time that is so critical and urgent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-kaine/people-will-pay-a-price-for-putting-political-obstruction-over/) [Tim Kaine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-kaine/) > [Windmills and solar cells are carbon-free sources of electricity. But they are costly. If you've been investing in those, give it up. That game…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-fisher/windmills-and-solar-cells-are-carbon-free-sources-of-electricity-but/) [Kenneth Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-fisher/) > [When I was a sophomore at USC, I was a socialist, pretty much to the left. But not when I left the university. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wayne/when-i-was-a-sophomore-at-usc-i-was-a-socialist-pretty-much-to-the/) [John Wayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wayne/) > [If you choose to work at a larger company over a smaller company, you are more likely to be higher paid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-sweet/if-you-choose-to-work-at-a-larger-company-over-a-smaller-company-you/) [Julie Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-sweet/) > [Curiosity is the essence of human existence. 'Who are we? Where are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going?'... I don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/curiosity-is-the-essence-of-human-existence-who-are-we-where-are-we/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Well of course there's been a great deal of progress over the last 40 years. We don't have laws that segregate black people within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angela-davis/well-of-course-there-s-been-a-great-deal-of-progress-over-the-last-40/) [Angela Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angela-davis/) > [Eventually the story would spill over into the regular media.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brock/eventually-the-story-would-spill-over-into-the-regular-media/) [David Brock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brock/) > [Brian Johnson, AC/DC, singing 'The Hokey Pokey' with him - I'll take that over any other moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-breuer/brian-johnson-ac-dc-singing-the-hokey-pokey-with-him-i-ll-take-that/) [Jim Breuer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-breuer/) > [I was a serious competitive figure skater and still ice-skate as much as I can. Anyway, I once brought a date to the rink…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-serratos/i-was-a-serious-competitive-figure-skater-and-still-ice-skate-as-much/) [Christian Serratos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-serratos/) > [I'm gaga over Richard Jenkins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margo-martindale/i-m-gaga-over-richard-jenkins/) [Margo Martindale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margo-martindale/) > [When we built Roomba, we explicitly designed it to not have a face. 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White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-g-white/) Browse all 5,511 Over quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In trying to cross over to the mainstream, some people stopped writing what they witnessed.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Melvin Van Peebles" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstream-some-people-stopped-writing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Over" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstream-some-people-stopped-writing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/102/melvin-van-peebles-8573_over_in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstrea_1113124.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/102/melvin-van-peebles-8573_over_in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstrea_1113124.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/102/melvin-van-peebles-8573_over_in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstrea_1113124.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In trying to cross over to the mainstream, some people stopped writing what they witnessed.” — Melvin Van Peebles", "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": "Melvin Van Peebles", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melvin-van-peebles/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In trying to cross over to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstream-some-people-stopped-writing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melvin-van-peebles/in-trying-to-cross-over-to-the-mainstream-some-people-stopped-writing/#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 } } ] } ```