Daring to make films of any kind and thus invite the possibility of ridicule was an internal battle of mine for many years as I worked on the screenplay for what would become ‘Dear White People’ beginning at the end of George W. Bush’s second term. Justin Simien Read Quote
I think we are aware that post-racialism isn’t real, right? I mean, I hope so. I kind of joke that we’re post-post-racial. Justin Simien Read Quote
There can’t be reverse racism against a group that is not at a disadvantage. Justin Simien Read Quote
As much as I’d love to believe that we are ‘post-racial’ – an idea that really gained traction after the election of Barack Obama in 2008 – I can never escape the fact that in the world I am perceived as a ‘black man’ and, in certain parts of the world, as a ‘black gay man.’ Justin Simien Read Quote
It is a fine line between making fun of the right thing and making fun of the wrong thing. And the language oftentimes is the same. Justin Simien Read Quote
We like to think of the ’60s as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X and a little bit of friction – no, there were all of these different groups. There was the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), the Black Panthers, Martin and Malcolm, but also the Whitney Youngs of the world, the Bayard Rustins of the world. Justin Simien Read Quote
That is just the reality of being a marginalized person in this country: you have to deal with the psychological impact of your oppressor – whether that’s being a woman dealing with men or gay people dealing with straight people or trans people dealing with everybody else. Justin Simien Read Quote
There is an obsession with black tragedy. If you see a black movie, it’s typically historical, and it tends to deal with our pain. And listen, there have been some excellent films made in that vein, and there are some painful parts of black history that should be explored, but it is kind of weird that only those films bubble up to the surface. Justin Simien Read Quote
Stories teach us empathy. They reveal to us ourselves in the skins of others. Justin Simien Read Quote
