--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My being a black woman is not a deficit…" description: "\"My being a black woman is not a deficit. It is a strength. Because I could not be where I am had I not overcome so many other barriers. Which means you..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67c/stacey-abrams-5605_deficit_my-being-a-black-woman-is-not-a-deficit_397290.jpg" --- # My being a black woman is not a deficit. It is a strength… ![“My being a black woman is not a deficit. It is a strength. Because I could not be where I am had I not overcome so many other barriers. Which means you know I'm relentless, you know I'm persistent, and you know I'm smart.” quote by Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67c/stacey-abrams-5605_deficit_my-being-a-black-woman-is-not-a-deficit_397290.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67c/stacey-abrams-5605_deficit_my-being-a-black-woman-is-not-a-deficit_397290.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67c/stacey-abrams-5605_deficit_my-being-a-black-woman-is-not-a-deficit_397290.jpg) > “My being a black woman is not a deficit. It is a strength. Because I could not be where I am had I not overcome so many other barriers. Which means you know I'm relentless, you know I'm persistent, and you know I'm smart.” [Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Being a Black woman is a source of strength, not a deficit, forged through overcoming barriers, demonstrating relentless persistence and intelligence. **In simple terms:** Being Black and female is a strength built through overcoming barriers. Key Takeaway Recognize and leverage your resilient identity. Themes identity resilience empowerment Mood inspirational empowering Type motivational reflective When to use this quote - career advancement - community leadership - policy advocacy - education reform - personal development Key Concepts intersectionality strength overcoming adversity Questions to Reflect On - How do you turn personal barriers into strengths? - What role does identity play in your persistence? A Different Perspective May underplay systemic oppression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Strength](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strength/) [Woman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/woman/) ## Related quotes > [In special education, there's too much emphasis placed on the deficit and not enough on the strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/temple-grandin/in-special-education-there-s-too-much-emphasis-placed-on-the-deficit/) [Temple Grandin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/temple-grandin/) > [“Dedicated to anyone who has weaknesses, and finds the strength to overcome them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassie-mae/dedicated-to-anyone-who-has-weaknesses-and-finds-the-strength-to/) [Cassie Mae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassie-mae/) > [“You have the grace of God and inner strength to overcome any challenge.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/you-have-the-grace-of-god-and-inner-strength-to-overcome-any-challenge/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [We acquire the strength we have overcome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/we-acquire-the-strength-we-have-overcome/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [God grant me the strength to overcome mediocrity and compromise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-grant-me-the-strength-to-overcome-mediocrity-and-compromise/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyday I pray to God, not to lessen my burdens & obstacles, but to give me strength to overcome them all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyday-i-pray-to-god-not-to-lessen-my-burdens-obstacles-but-to-give/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Discover your inner strength to overcome the fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dranil-kr-sinha/discover-your-inner-strength-to-overcome-the-fear/) [DrAnil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dranil-kr-sinha/) > [The Passover story is a reminder that our unity is our strength, and that there is nothing we cannot overcome, together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-mcbath/the-passover-story-is-a-reminder-that-our-unity-is-our-strength-and/) [Lucy McBath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-mcbath/) > [“God will give us strength to overcome the trials sent into our lives and will give us victory in every situation”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/god-will-give-us-strength-to-overcome-the-trials-sent-into-our-lives/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [''Life is shaky at times, just remember there is a way out of that.''' 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Trust God to grant you the needed grace and strength to overcome the situation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/always-look-heavenward-in-any-situation-trust-god-to-grant-you-the/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [I have never believed that my limitations were in any sense punishments or accidents. If I had held such a view, I could never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/i-have-never-believed-that-my-limitations-were-in-any-sense/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Courage, determination, confidence & strength to overcome all obstacle are the the mantra of success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dranil-kr-sinha/courage-determination-confidence-strength-to-overcome-all-obstacle/) [DrAnil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dranil-kr-sinha/) ## More by Stacey Abrams > [My mother grew up in abject poverty in Mississippi, an elementary school dropout. Yet, with the support of women around her, she returned to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-abrams/my-mother-grew-up-in-abject-poverty-in-mississippi-an-elementary/) [Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) > [One of the traditional rites of passage for political candidates is the revelation of financial status - a catechism-like recital of money mistakes made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-abrams/one-of-the-traditional-rites-of-passage-for-political-candidates-is/) [Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) > [Discriminatory legislation emboldens those who seek to make us afraid while giving those communities it hurts a concrete reason to fear. We must stay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-abrams/discriminatory-legislation-emboldens-those-who-seek-to-make-us-afraid/) [Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) > [I grew up one of six children with working-class parents in the Deep South. 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I won.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-abrams/i-got-into-my-first-fight-democrat-versus-republican-in-second-grade/) [Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) > [I have been privileged to write across multiple facets of my life: to write romance novels, to write memoir, to write about leadership, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-abrams/i-have-been-privileged-to-write-across-multiple-facets-of-my-life-to/) [Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) > [Do not allow setbacks to set you back.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-abrams/do-not-allow-setbacks-to-set-you-back/) [Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) > [From making it harder to register and stay on the rolls to moving and closing polling places to rejecting lawful ballots, we can no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-abrams/from-making-it-harder-to-register-and-stay-on-the-rolls-to-moving-and/) [Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) > [We must reject the cynicism that says allowing every eligible vote to be cast and counted is a 'power grab.' 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Local governments can use advanced energy to retrain workers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacey-abrams/clean-energy-jobs-can-exist-across-the-state-and-create-micro/) [Stacey Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) [Explore all 100 Stacey Abrams quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacey-abrams/) ## More Deficit quotes > [At times of recession, running a budget deficit is highly desirable. Once the economy begins to recover, you have to balance the budget. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/at-times-of-recession-running-a-budget-deficit-is-highly-desirable/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [There is a nationwide shortage of drugs for Attention Deficit Disorder. The FDA says they're not sure how it happened. I guess somebody wasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/there-is-a-nationwide-shortage-of-drugs-for-attention-deficit/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [The more competitive value of the dollar turned around the trade deficit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-feldstein/the-more-competitive-value-of-the-dollar-turned-around-the-trade/) [Martin Feldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-feldstein/) > [Inflation is not caused by the actions of private citizens, but by the government: by an artificial expansion of the money supply required to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/inflation-is-not-caused-by-the-actions-of-private-citizens-but-by-the/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [When you're talking about long-term deficit reduction, $4 trillion worth, entitlement reform needs to be part of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-durbin/when-you-re-talking-about-long-term-deficit-reduction-4-trillion/) [Dick Durbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-durbin/) > [I cannot conceive of a politically feasible solution to this problem which will overdo cutting the deficit, where overdoing means harming the economy. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/i-cannot-conceive-of-a-politically-feasible-solution-to-this-problem/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [The deficit crisis is real and must be addressed. But it cannot be solved on the backs of the weak and vulnerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-deficit-crisis-is-real-and-must-be-addressed-but-it-cannot-be/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [You know, dramas are much more expensive to do than say a comedy, so any kind of deficit like that is picked up on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-guilfoyle/you-know-dramas-are-much-more-expensive-to-do-than-say-a-comedy-so/) [Paul Guilfoyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-guilfoyle/) > [The major cause for American Negroes intellectual and social deficits is hereditary and racially genetic in origin and thus not remedial to a major…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shockley/the-major-cause-for-american-negroes-intellectual-and-social-deficits/) [William Shockley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shockley/) > [Back in those days, in the fifties and sixties, countries had balance of payment's deficits or surpluses, those were reflected much more than today…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-c-solomon/back-in-those-days-in-the-fifties-and-sixties-countries-had-balance/) [Robert C. Solomon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-c-solomon/) > [I am a deficit hawk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-cheney/i-am-a-deficit-hawk/) [Dick Cheney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-cheney/) > [What sets black people apart is not some deficit in personal responsibility. It's the weight on our shoulders. That is what's actually different. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/what-sets-black-people-apart-is-not-some-deficit-in-personal/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [I will bring our energy companies back. They'll be able to compete. They'll make money. They'll pay off our national debt. They'll pay off…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/i-will-bring-our-energy-companies-back-they-ll-be-able-to-compete/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [The company must be profitable. 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