--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is not a question of patronizing…" description: "\"It is not a question of patronizing philanthropy towards disabled people. They do not need the patronage of the non-disabled. It is not for them to ada..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/nelson-mandela-248_common_it-is-not-a-question-of-patronizing-phil_2798319.jpg" --- # It is not a question of patronizing philanthropy towards… ![“It is not a question of patronizing philanthropy towards disabled people. They do not need the patronage of the non-disabled. It is not for them to adapt to the dominant and dominating world of the so-called non-disabled. It is for us to adapt our understanding of a common humanity; to learn of…” quote by Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/nelson-mandela-248_common_it-is-not-a-question-of-patronizing-phil_2798319.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/nelson-mandela-248_common_it-is-not-a-question-of-patronizing-phil_2798319.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f47/nelson-mandela-248_common_it-is-not-a-question-of-patronizing-phil_2798319.jpg) > “It is not a question of patronizing philanthropy towards disabled people. They do not need the patronage of the non-disabled. It is not for them to adapt to the dominant and dominating world of the so-called non-disabled. It is for us to adapt our understanding of a common humanity; to learn of the richness of how human life is diverse; to recognize the presence of disability in our human midst as an enrichment of our diversity.” [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote urges society to shift from patronizing disabled people to recognizing disability as enriching human diversity and adapting our understanding accordingly. **In simple terms:** Treat disability as enriching, not a problem to fix. Key Takeaway Adapt attitudes, not people. Themes inclusion human rights diversity Mood reflective hopeful Type ethical inspirational When to use this quote - policy making - education - community building - media representation Key Concepts social justice humanity intersectionality Questions to Reflect On - How can institutions redesign to reflect diverse abilities? - What biases prevent true inclusion? A Different Perspective May overlook individual needs by overgeneralizing diversity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/) [Common humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-humanity/) [Disability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disability/) [Disability Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disability-human-3430943/) [Disabled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disabled/) [Disabled People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disabled-people/) [Diverse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diverse/) [Diversity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diversity/) [Dominant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dominant/) [Dominating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dominating/) [Enrichment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enrichment/) [Human life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-life/) [Humanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humanity/) [Humans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humans/) [Life is](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-is/) [Midst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/midst/) [Needs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needs/) [Patronage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patronage/) [Patronizing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patronizing/) [Patronizing Philanthropy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patronizing-philanthropy-3430942/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Philanthropy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philanthropy/) [Philanthropy Disabled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philanthropy-disabled-3430941/) [Richness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/richness/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [With its shrewd analysis and its knowledgeable reflections on the state of the arts, as well as a rich array of anecdotes and quotations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-culler/with-its-shrewd-analysis-and-its-knowledgeable-reflections-on-the/) [Jonathan Culler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-culler/) > [We are extricating ourselves from a system that insulted our common humanity by dividing us from one another on the basis of race and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/we-are-extricating-ourselves-from-a-system-that-insulted-our-common/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [We can build a society grounded on friendship and our common humanity - a society founded on tolerance. 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This attitude…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-thomas/republicans-should-save-the-clip-of-jonathan-gruber-and-run-it-over/) [Cal Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-thomas/) > [ \[To the patronizing train conductor who had twice said, 'Auntie, give me your ticket':\] Which of my sister's sons are you? ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-mcleod-bethune/to-the-patronizing-train-conductor-who-had-twice-said-auntie-give-me/) [Mary McLeod Bethune](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-mcleod-bethune/) > [“Excessive praise arises from the same bigotry matrix as excessive criticism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-molyneux/excessive-praise-arises-from-the-same-bigotry-matrix-as-excessive/) [Stefan Molyneux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-molyneux/) > [“Don't be so damned patronizing. Your performance so far has been a little less than dazzling." 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I have always endeavored to listen to what each and every person in a discussion had to say before venturing my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/as-a-leader-i-have-always-endeavored-to-listen-to-what-each-and-every/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Some of the mission groups that have been responsible for our education have not been part of the government. In fact, they acted contrary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/some-of-the-mission-groups-that-have-been-responsible-for-our/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [“I believed that I would become a counsellor to the Thembu king,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/i-believed-that-i-would-become-a-counsellor-to-the-thembu-king/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [What he means by this is that instead of saying you'll "try", you need to "do". 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