--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sadly, whites are rarely open to what…" description: "\"Sadly, whites are rarely open to what black and brown folks have to say regarding their ongoing experiences with racist mistreatment. And we are especi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e6/tim-wise-14074_better_sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-bla_2240216.jpg" --- # Sadly, whites are rarely open to what black and brown… ![“Sadly, whites are rarely open to what black and brown folks have to say regarding their ongoing experiences with racist mistreatment. And we are especially reluctant to discuss what that mistreatment means for us as whites: namely that we end up with more and better opportunities as the flipside…” quote by Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e6/tim-wise-14074_better_sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-bla_2240216.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e6/tim-wise-14074_better_sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-bla_2240216.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e6/tim-wise-14074_better_sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-bla_2240216.jpg) > “Sadly, whites are rarely open to what black and brown folks have to say regarding their ongoing experiences with racist mistreatment. And we are especially reluctant to discuss what that mistreatment means for us as whites: namely that we end up with more and better opportunities as the flipside of discrimination.” [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. White people often avoid confronting how their privilege benefits them, especially regarding racial discrimination. **In simple terms:** Whites ignore how they gain from racism. Key Takeaway Acknowledge and address privilege. Themes racism privilege self-awareness Mood critical thoughtful Type social ethical When to use this quote - workplace discussions - educational curricula - policy debates Key Concepts systemic inequality white fragility social justice Questions to Reflect On - What personal benefits do you recognize? - How can you use them to support equity? A Different Perspective May cause defensive reactions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Better Opportunities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better-opportunities/) [Discrimination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discrimination/) [Experiences](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experiences/) [Mistreatment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistreatment/) [Namely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/namely/) [Opportunities](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opportunities/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Reluctant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reluctant/) ## Related quotes > [Today we know that centralization and big bureaucracies have not, as promised, been the answer for promoting better opportunities for society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-salinas-de-gortari/today-we-know-that-centralization-and-big-bureaucracies-have-not-as/) [Carlos Salinas de Gortari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-salinas-de-gortari/) > [Biennial culture is already almost irrelevant, because so many more people are providing so many better opportunities for artists to exhibit their work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-saltz/biennial-culture-is-already-almost-irrelevant-because-so-many-more/) [Jerry Saltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-saltz/) > [Never shy off problem.Never dwell on what could have been,if you had not been under cloud of problem. You either make it happen,whats going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dranil-kr-sinha/never-shy-off-problem-never-dwell-on-what-could-have-been-if-you-had/) [DrAnil Kr Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dranil-kr-sinha/) > [By increasing productivity and becoming more competitive, we will be able to offer better opportunities and improve the standard of living for all Mexicans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enrique-pena-nieto/by-increasing-productivity-and-becoming-more-competitive-we-will-be/) [Enrique Pena Nieto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enrique-pena-nieto/) > [I'm one of the few people up here who actually believes that we need a level playing field when it comes to manufacturing. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-santorum/i-m-one-of-the-few-people-up-here-who-actually-believes-that-we-need/) [Rick Santorum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-santorum/) > [It's very true that an artist who networks well will have better opportunities than one who doesn't network well. But great networking skills without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kostabi/it-s-very-true-that-an-artist-who-networks-well-will-have-better/) [Mark Kostabi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kostabi/) > [As soon as you are comfortable with who you are, you start performing better, your life gets better, your relationships get better - opportunities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-alcott/as-soon-as-you-are-comfortable-with-who-you-are-you-start-performing/) [Dylan Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-alcott/) > [Obvious things like The Deer Hunter. After that happened, the scripts got better. Opportunities happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-walken/obvious-things-like-the-deer-hunter-after-that-happened-the-scripts/) [Christopher Walken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-walken/) > [I feel I've created some better opportunities in The Open than my record suggests and I know I can play links golf really, really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-rose/i-feel-i-ve-created-some-better-opportunities-in-the-open-than-my/) [Justin Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-rose/) > [But that we didn't have the level of experience in terms of working in the industry so you weren't sure and you needed to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nia-long/but-that-we-didn-t-have-the-level-of-experience-in-terms-of-working/) [Nia Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nia-long/) > [Bioethics is a very, very important field. As we get more and more in the arena of understanding science and getting better opportunities, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-fauci/bioethics-is-a-very-very-important-field-as-we-get-more-and-more-in/) [Anthony Fauci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-fauci/) > [“There is always a choice between truly healing and staying stuck in pain. When you truly heal, you are open to possibilities. You allow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-jerome/there-is-always-a-choice-between-truly-healing-and-staying-stuck-in/) Tatiana Jerome > [“It is amazing how dispiriting it can be to enter a learning environment and to be made immediately to suppress your own exploratory inclinations.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashim-shanker/it-is-amazing-how-dispiriting-it-can-be-to-enter-a-learning/) [Ashim Shanker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashim-shanker/) > [We need to strengthen basic infrastructure in border areas so that people don't migrate to other places looking for better opportunities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajnath-singh/we-need-to-strengthen-basic-infrastructure-in-border-areas-so-that/) [Rajnath Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajnath-singh/) > [“An opportunity is like train on the move. Once its doors have closed, it’s gone. But do stick around, another one is surely on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naide-p-obiang/an-opportunity-is-like-train-on-the-move-once-its-doors-have-closed/) [Naide P Obiang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naide-p-obiang/) ## More by Tim Wise > [Here's the reality. The image of a white Jesus has been used to justify enslavement, conquest, colonialism, the genocide of indigenous peoples. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/here-s-the-reality-the-image-of-a-white-jesus-has-been-used-to/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [For people of color - especially African Americans - the idea that racist cops might frame members of their community is no abstract notion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/for-people-of-color-especially-african-americans-the-idea-that-racist/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [Progress is always relative: to the oppressed, it can only be viewed as an all or nothing deal - if oppression continues, even in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/progress-is-always-relative-to-the-oppressed-it-can-only-be-viewed-as/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [I don't think the job of the antiracist is to convert the far-out heathen racist, or give them their 'come to Jesus' moment, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/i-don-t-think-the-job-of-the-antiracist-is-to-convert-the-far-out/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [And in "Elbow Room" the cast sings the glories of westward expansion in the United States, which involved the murder of native peoples and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/and-in-elbow-room-the-cast-sings-the-glories-of-westward-expansion-in/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [If we dont figure out a way to create equity, real equity, of opportunity and access, to good schools, housing, health care, and decent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/if-we-dont-figure-out-a-way-to-create-equity-real-equity-of/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [So, in "Melting Pot" the children (about a third of whom were kids of color) sang the line, "America was the new world and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/so-in-melting-pot-the-children-about-a-third-of-whom-were-kids-of/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [Hardly any aspect of my life, from where I had lived to my education to my employment history to my friendships, had been free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/hardly-any-aspect-of-my-life-from-where-i-had-lived-to-my-education/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [People of color have to do this work as a mater of everyday survival. And so long as they have to, who am I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/people-of-color-have-to-do-this-work-as-a-mater-of-everyday-survival/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [You can't organize people if you don't love them. And however hard it can be to love the racist you come in contact with;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/you-can-t-organize-people-if-you-don-t-love-them-and-however-hard-it/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [The denial of racism is a form of racism itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/the-denial-of-racism-is-a-form-of-racism-itself/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [Being asked to describe what 'post-racial' means is a bit like being asked to describe a leprechaun, cold fusion or unicorns: we know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/being-asked-to-describe-what-post-racial-means-is-a-bit-like-being/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [As a writer, there are times when you have something to say, and yet no particular 'hook' upon which to hang the missive you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/as-a-writer-there-are-times-when-you-have-something-to-say-and-yet-no/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [“The power of resistance is to set an example: not necessarily to change the person with whom you disagree, but to empower the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/the-power-of-resistance-is-to-set-an-example-not-necessarily-to/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [When you allow racial disparity and institutional inequity to affect one part of the country, eventually it's coming back to get everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/when-you-allow-racial-disparity-and-institutional-inequity-to-affect/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) [Explore all 48 Tim Wise quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) ## More Better quotes > [If what I write is literature, I guess you'd better emphasize the 'litter.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-lunch/if-what-i-write-is-literature-i-guess-you-d-better-emphasize-the/) [Lydia Lunch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-lunch/) > [Everybody has their cliques, and I was very shy. I'm still very shy. Music opened up doors. I would get to my choir class,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luis-fonsi/everybody-has-their-cliques-and-i-was-very-shy-i-m-still-very-shy/) [Luis Fonsi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luis-fonsi/) > [You can't force people to feel in a certain way, and the sooner you understand that,the better. I feel everything has its way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sidharth-malhotra/you-can-t-force-people-to-feel-in-a-certain-way-and-the-sooner-you/) [Sidharth Malhotra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sidharth-malhotra/) > [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/) [Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/) > [The bigger the canvas, the better I do. I'm not so good at understated, kitchen-sink kinds of parts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/the-bigger-the-canvas-the-better-i-do-i-m-not-so-good-at-understated/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > [The Little you Give !! The Better it Gets !!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-stanyer/the-little-you-give-the-better-it-gets/) [Mario Stanyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-stanyer/) > [A strong, durable Puerto Rican economy will leave the island better prepared to handle future natural disasters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-campos-duffy/a-strong-durable-puerto-rican-economy-will-leave-the-island-better/) [Rachel Campos-Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-campos-duffy/) > [In my first 100 days as Ontario's Minister of Transportation, I found a willing municipal partner in the City of Toronto that shares our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-mulroney/in-my-first-100-days-as-ontario-s-minister-of-transportation-i-found/) [Caroline Mulroney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-mulroney/) > [It hasn't been a conscious thing, like, 'I don't want to listen to a bunch of dudes,' but I genuinely like music by women…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soccer-mommy/it-hasn-t-been-a-conscious-thing-like-i-don-t-want-to-listen-to-a/) [Soccer Mommy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soccer-mommy/) > [Life is going to hit you some line drives, and sometimes you'll have to think fast. However, it's better to think first than to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bytheway/life-is-going-to-hit-you-some-line-drives-and-sometimes-you-ll-have/) [John Bytheway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bytheway/) > [I like to collaborate with other people for studio recordings because I believe collaboration, in any form, makes music better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-barlow/i-like-to-collaborate-with-other-people-for-studio-recordings-because/) [Lou Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-barlow/) > [Absolutely, you can improve and become better at toughness. It's a talent, but it can be acquired, too. I think of it like building…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-harbaugh/absolutely-you-can-improve-and-become-better-at-toughness-it-s-a/) [Jim Harbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-harbaugh/) > [Not having drops and not taking plays off, if I do that it will make everyone around me better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demaryius-thomas/not-having-drops-and-not-taking-plays-off-if-i-do-that-it-will-make/) [Demaryius Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demaryius-thomas/) > [Cara Delevingne and I took an eyebrow selfie. We both have prominent eyebrows, but hers are much better than mine. Maybe we should do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-poulter/cara-delevingne-and-i-took-an-eyebrow-selfie-we-both-have-prominent/) [Will Poulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-poulter/) > [I never really look at it past one year. I look at last year and my whole goal is to be a better player…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trent-williams/i-never-really-look-at-it-past-one-year-i-look-at-last-year-and-my/) [Trent Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trent-williams/) Browse all 17,085 Better quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Sadly, whites are rarely open to what black and brown folks have to say regarding their ongoing experiences with racist mistreatment. And we are especially reluctant to discuss what that mistreatment means for us as whites: namely that we end up with more and better opportunities as the flipside of discrimination.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Tim Wise" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-black-and-brown-folks-have-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Better" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-black-and-brown-folks-have-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e6/tim-wise-14074_better_sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-bla_2240216.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e6/tim-wise-14074_better_sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-bla_2240216.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8e6/tim-wise-14074_better_sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-bla_2240216.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Sadly, whites are rarely open to what black and brown folks have to say regarding their ongoing experiences…” — Tim Wise", "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": "Tim Wise", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Sadly, whites are rarely open to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-black-and-brown-folks-have-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/sadly-whites-are-rarely-open-to-what-black-and-brown-folks-have-to/#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 } } ] } ```