Posts Tagged ‘ta-nehisi coates’
Ta-Nehisi Coates: Pay Reparations
on Friday, February 23, 2024Meaning of Ta-Nehisi Coates Money Quote: saying Americans mythology the United States was founded on perfect ideals of equality, justice and fairness for all people wasn’t true. Ta-Nehisi Coates said:
“For Americans, the hardest part of paying reparations would not be the outlay of money. It would be acknowledging that their most cherished myth was not real.” — Ta-Nehisi Coates
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This quote by Ta-Nehisi Coates seems to be referring to the debate around paying reparations for slavery and racial injustice in the United States. Some key points:
- The monetary cost of reparations would not actually be the most difficult part for Americans, according to Coates.
- Rather, the hardest thing would be acknowledging that the “myth” many Americans hold most dear – perhaps the myth of equality, fairness and justice for all under the law from the country’s founding – was not real or fully true, especially for Black Americans throughout much of U.S. history.
- Reparations would require facing up to the fact that the nation was not built on perfect ideals of equality and justice for all people, as is often portrayed, but rather was tainted by the evils of racial oppression like slavery that have had lasting impacts.
Overall, the quote suggests that for many Americans, the most challenging aspect of paying reparations would be the psychological and national coming-to-terms with the imperfections and injustices of U.S. history, not the financial costs alone. It would force acknowledging flaws in deeply held beliefs about the country’s self-image and past.
Ta-Nehisi Coates: 1935 Ineligible
on Tuesday, October 31, 2023Meaning of Ta-Nehisi Coates Money Quote: saying When Social Security signed 1935, 56-80 percent African Americans Ineligible. Ta-Nehisi Coates said:
“When President Roosevelt signed Social Security into law in 1935, 65 percent of African Americans nationally and between 70 and 80 percent in the South were ineligible” — Ta-Nehisi Coates
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This quote from Ta-Nehisi Coates highlights how the original Social Security system failed to adequately cover many African Americans when it was first enacted in 1935 during the New Deal era. Some key points in interpreting this perspective:
- Coates notes that over 65% of black Americans nationwide and an even higher percentage in Southern states were excluded from Social Security benefits at inception.
- This was due to systemic discrimination and socioeconomic barriers that prevented significant portions of the black population from working in covered employment eligible for Social Security.
- The quote draws attention to how initial Social Security left behind many in the African American community by not addressing the realities of pervasive racism and lack of opportunities they faced in the early 20th century job market.
- A balanced interpretation acknowledges both this perspective as well as the ongoing efforts over time to make Social Security more equitable and universally accessible through legislative reforms that expanded coverage.
Overall, Coates’ observation reflects an important critique of how even New Deal programs fell short of fully protecting all Americans equally in practice due to historical discrimination and economic disparities of the era. Both this viewpoint and the ongoing work to strengthen social insurance merit consideration in discussions of the program’s history and impact.
Ta-Nehisi Coates: Race Measured Different
on Friday, December 23, 2016Ta-Nehisi Coates Money Quote saying racists measure a man differently depending on his race and hold whites to lower standards than those required of other races. So Trump was elected. Ta-Nehisi Coates said:
![How racism works. To be president, [Obama] had to be scholarly, intelligent, president of the Harvard Law Review, the product of some of our greatest educational institutions, capable of talking to two different worlds ... Donald Trump had to be rich and white. That was it. That’s the difference Quote](https://itsamoneything.com/money/wp-content/uploads/Ta-Nehisi-Coates-Racism-Obama-Intelligent-Trump-Rich-White.jpg)
“How racism works. To be president, [Obama] had to be scholarly, intelligent, president of the Harvard Law Review, the product of some of our greatest educational institutions, capable of talking to two different worlds … Donald Trump had to be rich and white. That was it. That’s the difference” — Ta-Nehisi Coates
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In this quote, Ta-Nehisi Coates seems to be drawing a comparison between the qualifications and attributes needed for Barack Obama versus Donald Trump to become president. Specifically:
- Coates notes that for Obama to be elected as the first Black president, he had to have extremely impressive academic and professional credentials like being scholarly, intelligent, and president of the Harvard Law Review.
- In contrast, Coates argues that for Trump, being rich and white was seemingly sufficient on its own according to the standards of racism in America.
- He implies that Trump did not need to have the same level of qualifications or ability to connect with different groups that Obama demonstrated.
Overall, the quote conveys Coates’ view that racism in the US political system sets a double standard, requiring far more competence and qualifications from non-white candidates compared to wealthy white candidates.