--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Whenever someone refers to me as someone…" description: "\"Whenever someone refers to me as someone \"who happens to be black,\" I wonder if they realize that both my parents are black. If I had turned out to be ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/336/thomas-sowell-247_black_whenever-someone-refers-to-me-as-someone_1219517.jpg" --- # Whenever someone refers to me as someone "who happens to… ![“Whenever someone refers to me as someone "who happens to be black," I wonder if they realize that both my parents are black. If I had turned out to be Scandinavian or Chinese, people would have wondered what was going on.” quote by Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/336/thomas-sowell-247_black_whenever-someone-refers-to-me-as-someone_1219517.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/336/thomas-sowell-247_black_whenever-someone-refers-to-me-as-someone_1219517.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/336/thomas-sowell-247_black_whenever-someone-refers-to-me-as-someone_1219517.jpg) > “Whenever someone refers to me as someone "who happens to be black," I wonder if they realize that both my parents are black. If I had turned out to be Scandinavian or Chinese, people would have wondered what was going on.” [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Racial identity is often reduced to superficial labels, ignoring deeper familial and cultural backgrounds. **In simple terms:** Labels oversimplify race. Key Takeaway Look beyond surface descriptors. Themes identity race perception society Mood critical inquisitive Type sociological philosophical When to use this quote - workplace - education - social discourse - policy making Key Concepts social constructs intersectionality family heritage Questions to Reflect On - How do you define identity? - What assumptions do you challenge? A Different Perspective Labels can sometimes highlight systemic issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) [Black Turned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-turned-3729174/) [Chinese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chinese/) [Diversity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/diversity/) [Happens Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happens-black-2140412/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Parents Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parents-black-456332/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Realizing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realizing/) [Scandinavian Chinese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scandinavian-chinese-3729175/) [Scandinavians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scandinavians/) [Social justice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/social-justice/) [Turned Scandinavian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turned-scandinavian-3729173/) [Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonder/) ## Related quotes > [I am urging the parents of black and Latino youngsters particularly to not let their children go out wearing hoodies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/geraldo-rivera/i-am-urging-the-parents-of-black-and-latino-youngsters-particularly/) [Geraldo Rivera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/geraldo-rivera/) > [Children with no father at home are between four and five times more likely to be poor as the children of married parents, whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-mac-donald/children-with-no-father-at-home-are-between-four-and-five-times-more/) [Heather Mac Donald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-mac-donald/) > [“More African American adults are under correctional control today - in prison or jail, on probation or parole - than were enslaved in 1850,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-alexander/more-african-american-adults-are-under-correctional-control-today-in/) [Michelle Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-alexander/) > [I view myself as a multicultural woman who happens to be black.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-williams/i-view-myself-as-a-multicultural-woman-who-happens-to-be-black/) [Wendy Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-williams/) > [I always say, no matter what happens to me as a black man in country music, I can handle it if Charley Pride could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darius-rucker/i-always-say-no-matter-what-happens-to-me-as-a-black-man-in-country/) [Darius Rucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darius-rucker/) > [What happens to Black Folks today, happens to White Folks tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-gregory/what-happens-to-black-folks-today-happens-to-white-folks-tomorrow/) [Dick Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-gregory/) > [“Have you been to the police?’ Richard asked. ‘Yes.’ She made a gesture of disgust and rose and walked to the window. ‘They said…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-baldwin/have-you-been-to-the-police-richard-asked-yes-she-made-a-gesture-of/) [James Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-baldwin/) > [“Music is not just the black dots on the white paper -- it's what happens when those black dots go into your heart, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-smith/music-is-not-just-the-black-dots-on-the-white-paper-it-s-what-happens/) [Phil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-smith/) > [“Everyone has their wings, it just so happens that mine are black.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/destiny-angel-king/everyone-has-their-wings-it-just-so-happens-that-mine-are-black/) [Destiny-Angel King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/destiny-angel-king/) > [The nature of Scandinavians is that they don't talk so much, there will be these dark secrets, and most things are under-communicated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-nesbo/the-nature-of-scandinavians-is-that-they-don-t-talk-so-much-there/) [Jo Nesbo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-nesbo/) > [More humane societies are usually smaller, like the Scandinavian countries and Holland, where it is much easier to reach consensus and cooperation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-korten/more-humane-societies-are-usually-smaller-like-the-scandinavian/) [David Korten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-korten/) > [Naturally I never had the intention to offend or alienate Slavs. … What makes me different from the ‘nazis’ are basically three things; unlike…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/varg-vikernes/naturally-i-never-had-the-intention-to-offend-or-alienate-slavs-what/) [Varg Vikernes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/varg-vikernes/) > [There are some long silences in Scandinavian and some Japanese films, when the audience knows action is taking place, but the audience hears no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-henrik-clarke/there-are-some-long-silences-in-scandinavian-and-some-japanese-films/) [John Henrik Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-henrik-clarke/) > [You forget, when you're in the Scandinavian countries, you forget they don't speak English first and they speak better than I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-stanhope/you-forget-when-you-re-in-the-scandinavian-countries-you-forget-they/) [Doug Stanhope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-stanhope/) > [Scandinavian crime fiction has become a great success all across the world and rightfully so. Sjowall and Wahloo ushered in a whole generation of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camilla-l-ckberg/scandinavian-crime-fiction-has-become-a-great-success-all-across-the/) [Camilla Lackberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camilla-l-ckberg/) ## More by Thomas Sowell > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [There is no bigger waste of time than doing 90% of what is necessary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/there-is-no-bigger-waste-of-time-than-doing-90-of-what-is-necessary/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [If you have always believed that everyone should play by the same rules and be judged by the same standards, that would have gotten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/if-you-have-always-believed-that-everyone-should-play-by-the-same/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [“In 1962, Democratic President John F. Kennedy, like both Democratic and Republican Presidents and Secretaries of the Treasury in earlier years, pointed out that “it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/in-1962-democratic-president-john-f-kennedy-like-both-democratic-and/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Ideological bigotry has become the norm on even our most prestigious campuses, where students can go for years without reading or hearing anything that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/ideological-bigotry-has-become-the-norm-on-even-our-most-prestigious/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Bailing out people who made ill-advised mortgages makes no more sense that bailing out people who lost their life savings in Las Vegas casinos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/bailing-out-people-who-made-ill-advised-mortgages-makes-no-more-sense/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [“One third of all Scots in the mid-nineteenth century moved from one county to another”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/one-third-of-all-scots-in-the-mid-nineteenth-century-moved-from-one/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [The difference is that we have the hardest and most painful evidence that there was a Holocaust. But, for the global warming scenario that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-difference-is-that-we-have-the-hardest-and-most-painful-evidence/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [“Just as price fluctuations allocate scarce resources which have alternative uses, price controls which limit those fluctuations reduce the incentives for individuals to limit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/just-as-price-fluctuations-allocate-scarce-resources-which-have/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [The greatest danger to the liberal vision are facts about the consequences of liberalism itself and the laws, policies, and ways of life that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-greatest-danger-to-the-liberal-vision-are-facts-about-the/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Having spent years ruining the housing markets with their interference, leading to a housing meltdown that has taken the whole economy down with it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/having-spent-years-ruining-the-housing-markets-with-their/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [Do all children have some inherent right to live in America if they have done nothing wrong? 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