To be clear, affirmative action is not, by itself, an adequate response to decades of systemic looting, but it has been an indispensible tool in inching us towards some semblance of a more equitable society. Clint Smith Read Quote
To operate with the aspiration of color-blindness in a country whose central operating mechanism for centuries has been race belies the logic of race-neutral public policy. Public policy must account for the historic and intentional pillaging of resources experienced by black Americans. Clint Smith Read Quote
Advocating for affirmative action through the prism of diversity may be more politically palatable, but it will inevitably yield insufficient results. Clint Smith Read Quote
New Orleans taught me that mourning takes many different forms. Where I’m from, mourning is spirited. It is loud. Clint Smith Read Quote
If the only people we are able to extend empathy to are those who are like us, who come from the same country we do, or who share our faith, then we misunderstand what empathy is. Clint Smith Read Quote
My poetry is me trying to reconcile my own life and opportunities I’ve had with opportunities my students aren’t given and how profoundly unfair that is. Clint Smith Read Quote
While violence is part of what it means to be part of the black diaspora in the United States, that is not all it means to be black. Clint Smith Read Quote
We inculcate young people with the message that if they don’t succeed, it is merely of their own doing. They should have worked harder, we say. They should have made better decisions. This message is especially present in communities of color. Clint Smith Read Quote
