--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We have to start imagining a new reality…" description: "\"We have to start imagining a new reality - this will mean fewer police and more social workers and teachers. This will mean creating more economic poss..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e29/opal-tometi-9098_investing_we-have-to-start-imagining-a-new-reality_2398415.jpg" --- # We have to start imagining a new reality - this will mean… ![“We have to start imagining a new reality - this will mean fewer police and more social workers and teachers. This will mean creating more economic possibilities and investment that preserves and does not displace our communities.” quote by Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e29/opal-tometi-9098_investing_we-have-to-start-imagining-a-new-reality_2398415.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e29/opal-tometi-9098_investing_we-have-to-start-imagining-a-new-reality_2398415.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e29/opal-tometi-9098_investing_we-have-to-start-imagining-a-new-reality_2398415.jpg) > “We have to start imagining a new reality - this will mean fewer police and more social workers and teachers. This will mean creating more economic possibilities and investment that preserves and does not displace our communities.” [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Imagining a future with fewer police, more social workers, teachers, and community‑preserving investment. **In simple terms:** Envision a community with care workers, not just police. Key Takeaway Promote social services over policing. Themes community justice economics social work Mood hopeful strategic Type visionary policy When to use this quote - urban planning - policy making - grassroots activism Key Concepts public safety investment equity Questions to Reflect On - How can we fund social services? - What challenges arise reducing police presence? A Different Perspective Balancing safety with community autonomy is complex. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Investing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/investing/) [Investment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/investment/) [Police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/police/) [Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reality/) [Social Workers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-workers/) ## Related quotes > [The Green New Deal is about creating economic security for everyone, and doing it quickly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/the-green-new-deal-is-about-creating-economic-security-for-everyone/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [If every school would hire two more music teachers, we would need two fewer police officers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-masur/if-every-school-would-hire-two-more-music-teachers-we-would-need-two/) [Kurt Masur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-masur/) > [Scepticism and refusal of authority is at the heart of scientific endeavour. Scientific knowledge dictates economic possibilities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-landes/scepticism-and-refusal-of-authority-is-at-the-heart-of-scientific/) [David Landes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-landes/) > [So, the emerging church is about a re-imagining: re-imagining our preaching, our evangelism, and our worship services. A re-imagining of new types of churches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-kimball/so-the-emerging-church-is-about-a-re-imagining-re-imagining-our/) [Dan Kimball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-kimball/) > [“The human mind has no more power of inventing a new value than of imagining a new primary colour, or, indeed, of creating a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis-2/the-human-mind-has-no-more-power-of-inventing-a-new-value-than-of-2/) [C.S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis-2/) > [One of the things that turns me on the most is imagining new worlds, just as I did as a kid, when I listened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-willing/one-of-the-things-that-turns-me-on-the-most-is-imagining-new-worlds/) [Nick Willing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-willing/) > [“Our ability to see the impact of changes before we make them is an important part of being human. Every new discovery…. is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sturt/our-ability-to-see-the-impact-of-changes-before-we-make-them-is-an/) [David Sturt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sturt/) > [“I had a keen delight in receiving the new ideas he offered, in imagining the new pictures he portrayed, and following him in thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-bronte/i-had-a-keen-delight-in-receiving-the-new-ideas-he-offered-in/) [Charlotte Brontë](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-bronte/) > [Metaphor creates a new reality from which the original appears to be unreal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/metaphor-creates-a-new-reality-from-which-the-original-appears-to-be/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [We're in a new reality, living in a time of climate change. We already have climate refugees around the globe and now have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/severn-cullis-suzuki/we-re-in-a-new-reality-living-in-a-time-of-climate-change-we-already/) [Severn Cullis-Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/severn-cullis-suzuki/) > [It turned out that the country was helpless in the face of a new reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-wajda/it-turned-out-that-the-country-was-helpless-in-the-face-of-a-new/) [Andrzej Wajda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-wajda/) > [It is a point where our old models must be discarded and a new reality rules.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vernor-vinge/it-is-a-point-where-our-old-models-must-be-discarded-and-a-new/) [Vernor Vinge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernor-vinge/) > [Awareness by being able to see that what you tell yourself shapes your reality, and being free to intervene and create a new reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/awareness-by-being-able-to-see-that-what-you-tell-yourself-shapes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Resilience is accepting your new reality, even if it's less good than the one you had before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-edwards/resilience-is-accepting-your-new-reality-even-if-it-s-less-good-than/) [Elizabeth Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-edwards/) > [Tonight theres a new reality show on Fox: Fast Animals, Slow Children. -Peter Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/family-guy/tonight-theres-a-new-reality-show-on-fox-fast-animals-slow-children/) [Family Guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/family-guy/) ## More by Opal Tometi > [There are always groups on campus that are doing amazing things. I know when I was in college, I was a student at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/there-are-always-groups-on-campus-that-are-doing-amazing-things-i/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [Let's demonstrate, illustrate, the ways in which our communities are being undermined time and time again, and make sure that the broader public and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/let-s-demonstrate-illustrate-the-ways-in-which-our-communities-are/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [Being in the immigrant rights space, I've heard a lot of transactional talk with questions like, 'When will black people show up for immigrants?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/being-in-the-immigrant-rights-space-i-ve-heard-a-lot-of-transactional/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [Our communities are reeling from poverty, from unemployment, from discrimination of all sorts and different interactions that they're having with the law enforcement, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/our-communities-are-reeling-from-poverty-from-unemployment-from/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [Antiblack racism is not only happening in the United States. It's actually happening all across the globe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/antiblack-racism-is-not-only-happening-in-the-united-states-it-s/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [I'm really looking for an agenda that looks at safety for our communities beyond policing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/i-m-really-looking-for-an-agenda-that-looks-at-safety-for-our/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [I just look back at my time in college and think about how much my community activism and my work in neighborhoods really informed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/i-just-look-back-at-my-time-in-college-and-think-about-how-much-my/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [Trump's racism has clearly driven his policy decisions during his first year in office - from his Muslim ban and his despicable treatment of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/trump-s-racism-has-clearly-driven-his-policy-decisions-during-his/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [I have two younger brothers, and I know my parents have spoken to them about driving and interacting with police. They didn't have those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/i-have-two-younger-brothers-and-i-know-my-parents-have-spoken-to-them/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [Lean into your curiosity about any issue, and there will likely be people to share a little bit more of their knowledge and insight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/lean-into-your-curiosity-about-any-issue-and-there-will-likely-be/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [We can't continue to sit on our hands and sit idly by as people are being brutalized, disenfranchised, and left out of the system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/we-can-t-continue-to-sit-on-our-hands-and-sit-idly-by-as-people-are/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [Far from ending, systemic racism reinvents itself to conform to what is publically acceptable, leaving the quality of black life diminished and more permanently…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/far-from-ending-systemic-racism-reinvents-itself-to-conform-to-what/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [Some of us have held the hands of friends or brothers as they struggled with military and police academy recruiters, and though many of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/some-of-us-have-held-the-hands-of-friends-or-brothers-as-they/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [Only when the oppressed are heard can we have an honest solutions based dialogue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/only-when-the-oppressed-are-heard-can-we-have-an-honest-solutions/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) > [We know that there are people in our nation, black people, who are systematically being disenfranchised in a number of spheres in our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/opal-tometi/we-know-that-there-are-people-in-our-nation-black-people-who-are/) [Opal Tometi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) [Explore all 75 Opal Tometi quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/opal-tometi/) ## More Investing quotes > [Don't let's lose sight of what creates wealth. It is open markets, it is capitalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/don-t-let-s-lose-sight-of-what-creates-wealth-it-is-open-markets-it/) [Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [Don't think OF the market. Think AS the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-fishman/don-t-think-of-the-market-think-as-the-market/) Michael Fishman > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [The market may never coalesce around one basic design, or even around two or three dominant devices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-peters/the-market-may-never-coalesce-around-one-basic-design-or-even-around/) [Tom Peters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-peters/) > [“The market was king, that much was clear. Share worth had replaced human worth. And it wasn’t so much a question of what that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arne-dahl/the-market-was-king-that-much-was-clear-share-worth-had-replaced/) [Arne Dahl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arne-dahl/) > [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/) > [The exact details of how you practice value investing will vary investor to investor, but the fundamental principle of scouring the world, looking for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-tilson/the-exact-details-of-how-you-practice-value-investing-will-vary/) [Whitney Tilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-tilson/) > [“Wed don't need to live like the elites of California, New York, or Washington, D.C. We don't need to work a hundred hours a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-vance/wed-don-t-need-to-live-like-the-elites-of-california-new-york-or/) [J.D. Vance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-vance/) > [Television series are like the stock market. There's room for bears and bulls but no room for pigs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-newhart/television-series-are-like-the-stock-market-there-s-room-for-bears/) [Bob Newhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-newhart/) > [That's one of the things about the NFL is that you have small-market teams, big-market teams. I feel like the bigger market teams do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-kelce/that-s-one-of-the-things-about-the-nfl-is-that-you-have-small-market/) [Travis Kelce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-kelce/) > [In China, people are moving from bigger cars to small hatches, and interestingly, the Indian market is graduating to bigger cars and sedans. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winfried-vahland/in-china-people-are-moving-from-bigger-cars-to-small-hatches-and/) [Winfried Vahland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winfried-vahland/) > [Congress passed the American Rescue Plan Act in a tremendous investment to support millions of workers without a paycheck and behind on bills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-auchincloss/congress-passed-the-american-rescue-plan-act-in-a-tremendous/) [Jake Auchincloss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-auchincloss/) > [“a select group of high-performing companies have managed to close the strategy-to-performance gap through better planning and execution. These companies—Barclays, Cisco Systems, Dow Chemical,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-c-mankins/a-select-group-of-high-performing-companies-have-managed-to-close-the/) [Michael C. Mankins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-c-mankins/) > [I'll invest my money in people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-keith-kellogg/i-ll-invest-my-money-in-people/) [Will Keith Kellogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-keith-kellogg/) [Browse all 13,164 Investing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/investing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We have to start imagining a new reality - this will mean fewer police and more social workers and teachers. 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