--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: So de white man throw down de load and…" description: "\"“So de white man throw down de load and tell de nigger man tuh pick it up. He pick it up because he have to, but he don’t tote it. He hand it to his wo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f7f/zora-neale-hurston-923_nigger_so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-t_1337913.png" --- # So de white man throw down de load and tell de nigger man… ![“So de white man throw down de load and tell de nigger man tuh pick it up. He pick it up because he have to, but he don’t tote it. He hand it to his womenfolks. De nigger woman is de mule uh de world so fur as Ah can see.” quote by Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f7f/zora-neale-hurston-923_nigger_so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-t_1337913.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f7f/zora-neale-hurston-923_nigger_so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-t_1337913.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f7f/zora-neale-hurston-923_nigger_so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-t_1337913.png) > ““So de white man throw down de load and tell de nigger man tuh pick it up. He pick it up because he have to, but he don’t tote it. He hand it to his womenfolks. De nigger woman is de mule uh de world so fur as Ah can see.”” [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The passage depicts a racial and gender hierarchy where Black men are forced to bear burdens while Black women are portrayed as overburdened laborers, highlighting systemic oppression. **In simple terms:** Black men and women face different, imposed hardships. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge systemic inequities. Themes racism gender power dynamics Mood critical somber Type social historical When to use this quote - workplace - family responsibilities - community activism - education Key Concepts intersectionality social oppression historical context Questions to Reflect On - How do gender and race intersect in labor expectations? - What can be done to share burdens more equitably? A Different Perspective The quote reflects a stereotypical view that may oversimplify complex social realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Mule Uh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mule-uh-4509743/) [Nigger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nigger/) [Nigger Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nigger-man-4509741/) [Tell Nigger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tell-nigger-4509740/) [Womenfolks Nigger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/womenfolks-nigger-4509742/) ## Related quotes > [Nigger Money talks trust me I know what I'm saying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trunxbeats/nigger-money-talks-trust-me-i-know-what-i-m-saying/) [Trunxbeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trunxbeats/) > [“The art of rap is deceptive. It seems so straightforward and personal and real that people read it completely literally, as raw testimony or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/the-art-of-rap-is-deceptive-it-seems-so-straightforward-and-personal/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [MINSTREL, adj. Formerly a poet, singer or musician; now a nigger with a color less than skin deep and a humor more than flesh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/minstrel-adj-formerly-a-poet-singer-or-musician-now-a-nigger-with-a/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [“This is just a nigger talkin', an' a busted-back nigger. So it don't mean nothing, see? You couldn't remember it anyways. I seen it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/this-is-just-a-nigger-talkin-an-a-busted-back-nigger-so-it-don-t-mean/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [“it was worth half-cent to kill a "nigger", and a half-cent to bury one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/it-was-worth-half-cent-to-kill-a-nigger-and-a-half-cent-to-bury-one/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“I Ain't Got No Quarrel With The VietCong...No VietCong Ever Called Me Nigger.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/i-ain-t-got-no-quarrel-with-the-vietcong-no-vietcong-ever-called-me/) [Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/) > [“Beloved, there is something black folk fear, whether you can see it or not, whether some of us black folk will say it or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-eric-dyson/beloved-there-is-something-black-folk-fear-whether-you-can-see-it-or/) [Michael Eric Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-eric-dyson/) > [“Nigger-eye Berries cast dark Hooks -- Black sweet blood mouthfuls, Shadows.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/nigger-eye-berries-cast-dark-hooks-black-sweet-blood-mouthfuls-shadows/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“Stagolee was, undoubtedly and without question, the baddest nigger that ever lived. Stagolee was so bad that the flies wouldn't even fly around his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-lester/stagolee-was-undoubtedly-and-without-question-the-baddest-nigger-that/) [Julius Lester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-lester/) > [“Both Richard and I sat silent and watched Jennifer Lee . She came across the room and over to us and swept our chess…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-brown/both-richard-and-i-sat-silent-and-watched-jennifer-lee-she-came/) [Cecil Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-brown/) > [“Dear Momma―Wherever you are, if ever you hear the word "nigger" again, remember they are advertising my book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-gregory/dear-momma-wherever-you-are-if-ever-you-hear-the-word-nigger-again/) [Dick Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-gregory/) > [“Why was "nigger" bleeped out? I mean, "nigger" is a word that exists. People use it. It is part of America. It has caused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/why-was-nigger-bleeped-out-i-mean-nigger-is-a-word-that-exists-people/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [“He never denied it. He never did anything. He never acted like either a nigger or a white man. That was it. That was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/he-never-denied-it-he-never-did-anything-he-never-acted-like-either-a/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [“Brian darling, I’m really not such an idiot that I don’t realize that if a man calls me a nigger it’s his fault the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nella-larsen/brian-darling-i-m-really-not-such-an-idiot-that-i-don-t-realize-that/) [Nella Larsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nella-larsen/) > [Wait a minute motherfucker! You gotta twerk a little It didn't work to me, Now turn back and make a try Now pick it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wait-a-minute-motherfucker-you-gotta-twerk-a-little-it-didn-t-work-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Zora Neale Hurston > [It seemed to me that the human beings I met reacted pretty much the same to the same stimuli. Different idioms,yes. Circumstances and conditions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/it-seemed-to-me-that-the-human-beings-i-met-reacted-pretty-much-the/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/ships-at-a-distance-have-every-man-s-wish-on-board-for-some-they-come/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Please God, please suh, don't let him love nobody else but me. Maybe Ah'm is uh fool, Lawd, lak dey say, but Lawd, Ah…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/please-god-please-suh-don-t-let-him-love-nobody-else-but-me-maybe-ah/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“But mostly she lived between her hat and her heels, with her emotional disturbances like shade patterns in the woods—come and gone with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/but-mostly-she-lived-between-her-hat-and-her-heels-with-her-emotional/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Light came to me when I realized that I did not have to consider any racial group as a whole. God made them duck…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/light-came-to-me-when-i-realized-that-i-did-not-have-to-consider-any/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Gods always behave like the people who make them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/gods-always-behave-like-the-people-who-make-them/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Love, I find, is like singing. Everyone can do enough to satisfy themselves, though it may not impress the neighbors as being very much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/love-i-find-is-like-singing-everyone-can-do-enough-to-satisfy/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“The woman took the faded shirt and muddy overalls and laid them away from remembrance. It was a weapon against her strength and if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/the-woman-took-the-faded-shirt-and-muddy-overalls-and-laid-them-away/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“They plan and they fix and they do, and then some kitchen-dwelling fiend slips a scorchy, soggy, tasteless mess into their pots and pans…So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/they-plan-and-they-fix-and-they-do-and-then-some-kitchen-dwelling/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“Years ago, she had told her girl self to wait for her in the looking glass. It had been a long time since she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/years-ago-she-had-told-her-girl-self-to-wait-for-her-in-the-looking/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“Ah jus lak uh chicken. Chicken drink water, but he don’t pee-pee.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/ah-jus-lak-uh-chicken-chicken-drink-water-but-he-don-t-pee-pee/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“Like the pecking-order in a chicken yard. Insensate cruelty to those you can whip, and groveling submission to those you can’t. Once having set…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/like-the-pecking-order-in-a-chicken-yard-insensate-cruelty-to-those/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [The Haitian people are gentle and lovable except for their enormous and unconscious cruelty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/the-haitian-people-are-gentle-and-lovable-except-for-their-enormous/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Now, suppose a Negro does something really magnificent, and I glory, not in the benefit to mankind, but in the fact that the doer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/now-suppose-a-negro-does-something-really-magnificent-and-i-glory-not/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Anybody depending on somebody else's gods is depending on a fox not to eat chickens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/anybody-depending-on-somebody-else-s-gods-is-depending-on-a-fox-not/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) [Explore all 326 Zora Neale Hurston quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) ## More Nigger quotes > [Nigger Money talks trust me I know what I'm saying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trunxbeats/nigger-money-talks-trust-me-i-know-what-i-m-saying/) [Trunxbeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trunxbeats/) > [“Brian darling, I’m really not such an idiot that I don’t realize that if a man calls me a nigger it’s his fault the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nella-larsen/brian-darling-i-m-really-not-such-an-idiot-that-i-don-t-realize-that/) [Nella Larsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nella-larsen/) > [“He never denied it. He never did anything. He never acted like either a nigger or a white man. That was it. That was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/he-never-denied-it-he-never-did-anything-he-never-acted-like-either-a/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [“Why was "nigger" bleeped out? I mean, "nigger" is a word that exists. People use it. It is part of America. It has caused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/why-was-nigger-bleeped-out-i-mean-nigger-is-a-word-that-exists-people/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) > [“Dear Momma―Wherever you are, if ever you hear the word "nigger" again, remember they are advertising my book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-gregory/dear-momma-wherever-you-are-if-ever-you-hear-the-word-nigger-again/) [Dick Gregory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-gregory/) > [“Both Richard and I sat silent and watched Jennifer Lee . She came across the room and over to us and swept our chess…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-brown/both-richard-and-i-sat-silent-and-watched-jennifer-lee-she-came/) [Cecil Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecil-brown/) > [“Stagolee was, undoubtedly and without question, the baddest nigger that ever lived. Stagolee was so bad that the flies wouldn't even fly around his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julius-lester/stagolee-was-undoubtedly-and-without-question-the-baddest-nigger-that/) [Julius Lester](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julius-lester/) > [“Nigger-eye Berries cast dark Hooks -- Black sweet blood mouthfuls, Shadows.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-plath/nigger-eye-berries-cast-dark-hooks-black-sweet-blood-mouthfuls-shadows/) [Sylvia Plath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-plath/) > [“Beloved, there is something black folk fear, whether you can see it or not, whether some of us black folk will say it or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-eric-dyson/beloved-there-is-something-black-folk-fear-whether-you-can-see-it-or/) [Michael Eric Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-eric-dyson/) > [“I Ain't Got No Quarrel With The VietCong...No VietCong Ever Called Me Nigger.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/i-ain-t-got-no-quarrel-with-the-vietcong-no-vietcong-ever-called-me/) [Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/) > [“it was worth half-cent to kill a "nigger", and a half-cent to bury one.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/it-was-worth-half-cent-to-kill-a-nigger-and-a-half-cent-to-bury-one/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [“This is just a nigger talkin', an' a busted-back nigger. So it don't mean nothing, see? You couldn't remember it anyways. I seen it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/this-is-just-a-nigger-talkin-an-a-busted-back-nigger-so-it-don-t-mean/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [MINSTREL, adj. Formerly a poet, singer or musician; now a nigger with a color less than skin deep and a humor more than flesh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/minstrel-adj-formerly-a-poet-singer-or-musician-now-a-nigger-with-a/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [“The art of rap is deceptive. It seems so straightforward and personal and real that people read it completely literally, as raw testimony or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/the-art-of-rap-is-deceptive-it-seems-so-straightforward-and-personal/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [Wait a minute motherfucker! You gotta twerk a little It didn't work to me, Now turn back and make a try Now pick it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/wait-a-minute-motherfucker-you-gotta-twerk-a-little-it-didn-t-work-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 87 Nigger quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nigger/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“So de white man throw down de load and tell de nigger man tuh pick it up. He pick it up because he have to, but he don’t tote it. He hand it to his womenfolks. De nigger woman is de mule uh de world so fur as Ah can see.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Zora Neale Hurston" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-tell-de-nigger-man-tuh-pick-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Nigger" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-tell-de-nigger-man-tuh-pick-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f7f/zora-neale-hurston-923_nigger_so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-t_1337913.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f7f/zora-neale-hurston-923_nigger_so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-t_1337913.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f7f/zora-neale-hurston-923_nigger_so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-t_1337913.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“So de white man throw down de load and tell de nigger man tuh pick it up. He pick it up because he have to…” — Zora Neale Hurston", "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": "Zora Neale Hurston", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“So de white man throw down...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-tell-de-nigger-man-tuh-pick-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/so-de-white-man-throw-down-de-load-and-tell-de-nigger-man-tuh-pick-it/#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 } } ] } ```