--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think sometimes what people miss about…" description: "\"I think sometimes what people miss about black people is that we're complicated.\" — Viola Davis" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2d/viola-davis-1174_black_i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about_2189928.png" --- # I think sometimes what people miss about black people is… ![“I think sometimes what people miss about black people is that we're complicated.” quote by Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2d/viola-davis-1174_black_i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about_2189928.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2d/viola-davis-1174_black_i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about_2189928.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2d/viola-davis-1174_black_i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about_2189928.png) > “I think sometimes what people miss about black people is that we're complicated.” [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often overlook the depth and nuance of Black individuals, reducing them to stereotypes. **In simple terms:** Black people are complex, not one‑dimensional. Key Takeaway Recognize and honor the full humanity of every person. Themes identity stereotypes complexity Mood reflective empathetic Type social inspirational When to use this quote - media representation - personal relationships - education - policy discussions Key Concepts intersectionality human dignity Questions to Reflect On - How can we challenge simplistic narratives? - What steps promote deeper understanding? A Different Perspective Stereotypes persist despite awareness efforts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) [Black people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-people/) [Complicated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complicated/) [Missing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/missing/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Complicated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-complicated-318512/) [People Miss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-miss-423375/) [Racism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/racism/) [Sometimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sometimes/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [I think sometimes what people miss about black people is that we're complicated, that we are indeed messy, that we do our best with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about-black-people-is-that-we-re/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I just think that people are complicated, both men and women. It happens that I write more about women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-sittenfeld/i-just-think-that-people-are-complicated-both-men-and-women-it/) [Curtis Sittenfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-sittenfeld/) > [People are more complicated than you give them credit for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harbour/people-are-more-complicated-than-you-give-them-credit-for/) [David Harbour](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harbour/) > [I love people who are complicated, and I love playing people who are complicated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-marisi-ornstein/i-love-people-who-are-complicated-and-i-love-playing-people-who-are/) [Michael Marisi Ornstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-marisi-ornstein/) > [Nobody looks like what they really are on the inside. You don’t. I don’t. People are much more complicated than that. It’s true of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/nobody-looks-like-what-they-really-are-on-the-inside-you-don-t-i-don/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [People are complicated. People have secrets. It doesnt make them good people or bad people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-zayas/people-are-complicated-people-have-secrets-it-doesnt-make-them-good/) [David Zayas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-zayas/) > [People are complicated. Personally I don't go in for puritanical people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-kushner/people-are-complicated-personally-i-don-t-go-in-for-puritanical-people/) [Rachel Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-kushner/) > [People are complicated creatures. On the one hand, capable of great acts of charity, and on the other, capable of the most underhanded forms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-alice/people-are-complicated-creatures-on-the-one-hand-capable-of-great/) [Mary Alice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-alice/) > [Some people miss flesh as a drunkard misses his dram.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-muir/some-people-miss-flesh-as-a-drunkard-misses-his-dram/) [John Muir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-muir/) > [Unlucky people miss chance opportunities because they are too focused on looking for something else. They go to parties intent on finding their perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-wiseman/unlucky-people-miss-chance-opportunities-because-they-are-too-focused/) [Richard Wiseman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-wiseman/) > [It's better for people to miss you than to have seen too much of you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-norton/it-s-better-for-people-to-miss-you-than-to-have-seen-too-much-of-you/) [Edward Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-norton/) > [I think we often paint people as victims. In that way we make them tragic figures and try to look away from them. Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-victor/i-think-we-often-paint-people-as-victims-in-that-way-we-make-them/) [Eva Victor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-victor/) > [“for the people must have some complicated machinery or other, and hear its din, to satisfy that idea of government which they have.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/for-the-people-must-have-some-complicated-machinery-or-other-and-hear/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [“What of it? Tokyo people are complicated. They live in such noise and confusion that their feelings are broken to little bits.” “Everything is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasunari-kawabata/what-of-it-tokyo-people-are-complicated-they-live-in-such-noise-and/) [Yasunari Kawabata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasunari-kawabata/) > [Will picked a single blossom from a gorse bush beside him; it shone bright yellow on his grubby hand. "People are very complicated," he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cooper/will-picked-a-single-blossom-from-a-gorse-bush-beside-him-it-shone/) [Susan Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cooper/) ## More by Viola Davis > [I look back at pictures of myself and I remember thinking, "I was so fat when I was growing up. I was 165 pounds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-look-back-at-pictures-of-myself-and-i-remember-thinking-i-was-so/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I am not a glam woman - this definitely is a mask I put on for the public.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-am-not-a-glam-woman-this-definitely-is-a-mask-i-put-on-for-the/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I was bullied at school. The black girl in Central Falls, Rhode Island, in 1973. There'd be 8 or 10 boys; I would count…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-was-bullied-at-school-the-black-girl-in-central-falls-rhode-island/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [That's why there's so much bad acting out there, because you could see actors watching themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/that-s-why-there-s-so-much-bad-acting-out-there-because-you-could-see/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I want my work to reflect my level of gifts and talent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-want-my-work-to-reflect-my-level-of-gifts-and-talent/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I don’t want anyone putting any limits on me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-don-t-want-anyone-putting-any-limits-on-me/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [ I think that's why August \[Wilson\] named her Rose \[in "Fences"\]; I really do. She's a rose in her sweetness and her kindness and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-think-that-s-why-august-wilson-named-her-rose-in-fences-i-really-do/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [When you're working as an actor, you don't think that when you get out of school, it's going to be so hard to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/when-you-re-working-as-an-actor-you-don-t-think-that-when-you-get-out/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I suffered from low self-esteem for much of my life. And now to feel like maybe something that I'm projecting or saying could mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-suffered-from-low-self-esteem-for-much-of-my-life-and-now-to-feel/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I tell my daughter every morning, 'Now, what are the two most important parts of you?' And she says, 'My head and my heart.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-tell-my-daughter-every-morning-now-what-are-the-two-most-important/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I started a production company out of necessity, the need for great narratives for actors of color.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-started-a-production-company-out-of-necessity-the-need-for-great/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [That's always the biggest surprise when people meet me: how buoyant I am and how fun and light I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/that-s-always-the-biggest-surprise-when-people-meet-me-how-buoyant-i/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [When you're working as an actor, you don't think that when you get out of school, it's going to be so hard to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/when-you-re-working-as-an-actor-you-don-t-think-that-when-you-get-out-2/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [ It was hard, that confrontation scene \[in "Fences"\], that was a hard one. I felt like it was relentless, I never felt like I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/it-was-hard-that-confrontation-scene-in-fences-that-was-a-hard-one-i/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) > [I am addicted to any facial product that's anti-aging.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-am-addicted-to-any-facial-product-that-s-anti-aging/) [Viola Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) [Explore all 279 Viola Davis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/) ## More Black quotes > [I wanted to write about voodoo tradition that I feel has been very important to survival of black people here: people of the African…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-wanted-to-write-about-voodoo-tradition-that-i-feel-has-been-very/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [When you go to a club it's not about being black or white or heavy or thick. I'm shaking my ass because I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley-cyrus/when-you-go-to-a-club-it-s-not-about-being-black-or-white-or-heavy-or/) [Miley Cyrus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley-cyrus/) > [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/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [How can you be more subject; black woman in a white man's world?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-duffy/how-can-you-be-more-subject-black-woman-in-a-white-man-s-world/) [Maureen Duffy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-duffy/) > [We have to build our own power. We have to win every single political office we can, where we have a majority of black…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-lou-hamer/we-have-to-build-our-own-power-we-have-to-win-every-single-political/) [Fannie Lou Hamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-lou-hamer/) > [There is only one party in the United States, the Property Party...and it has two right wings: Republican and Democrat. Republicans are a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/there-is-only-one-party-in-the-united-states-the-property-party-and/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [Black music has always known, and not been afraid to acknowledge just how high the stakes of Black thought are. To summarize the final…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-b-wilderson-iii/black-music-has-always-known-and-not-been-afraid-to-acknowledge-just/) [Frank B. Wilderson III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-b-wilderson-iii/) > [I know how hard it is to be a woman, especially a black woman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tyson/i-know-how-hard-it-is-to-be-a-woman-especially-a-black-woman/) [Mike Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tyson/) > [If soot stains your tunic, dye it black. This is vengeance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-scott-bakker/if-soot-stains-your-tunic-dye-it-black-this-is-vengeance/) [R. Scott Bakker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-scott-bakker/) > [Hollywood is so fixated on keeping it that way because it's generating the buzz, but that representation isn't right. I definitely feel like it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-boyega/hollywood-is-so-fixated-on-keeping-it-that-way-because-it-s/) [John Boyega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-boyega/) > [Nowadays most people wear black most of the time anyway: go to a literary party and one would imagine everyone there was in perpetual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fay-weldon/nowadays-most-people-wear-black-most-of-the-time-anyway-go-to-a/) [Fay Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fay-weldon/) > [There ain't no such thing as black Muslims. That's how they tried to cut off all my brothers in the rest of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/there-ain-t-no-such-thing-as-black-muslims-that-s-how-they-tried-to/) [Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) [Browse all 11,655 Black quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think sometimes what people miss about black people is that we're complicated.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Viola Davis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about-black-people-is-that-we-re-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Black" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about-black-people-is-that-we-re-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2d/viola-davis-1174_black_i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about_2189928.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2d/viola-davis-1174_black_i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about_2189928.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f2d/viola-davis-1174_black_i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about_2189928.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think sometimes what people miss about black people is that we're complicated.” — Viola Davis", "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": "Viola Davis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-davis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think sometimes what people miss...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about-black-people-is-that-we-re-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-davis/i-think-sometimes-what-people-miss-about-black-people-is-that-we-re-2/#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 } } ] } ```