Read This to Get Smarter Quotes

“Biases are learned and can and must be unlearned.”
― Blair Imani, Read This to Get Smarter: About Race, Class, Gender, Disability & More

“While it’s okay for people to have differing political beliefs, if an individual’s beliefs are dehumanizing, you are allowed to reject those beliefs. You do not have to “see the other side” of an argument if the other side is rooted in denying other people’s humanity and dignity and disrespecting others.”
― Blair Imani, Read This to Get Smarter: About Race, Class, Gender, Disability & More

“When we refer to others, we should do so on their terms. Not on ours.”
― Blair Imani, Read This to Get Smarter: About Race, Class, Gender, Disability, and More

“It has become increasingly common for people, for a variety of reasons, to use "they/them" as their personal pronouns rather than using gendered pronouns. Unfortunately, people who object to using or respecting the use of they/them pronouns often point to "grammar" as the reason they cannot use someone's correct pronouns. These people are both disrespectful and incorrect: the singular "they" is the English language dates back to the 1300s. Regardless, grammar is a pathetic excuse to deny someone their humanity and not use their correct pronouns.”
― Blair Imani, Read This to Get Smarter: About Race, Class, Gender, Disability, and More

“Getting smarter about last names means recognizing that families come in different forms, have different arrangements and traditions, and make different decisions.”
― Blair Imani, Read This to Get Smarter: About Race, Class, Gender, Disability, and More

“One way to understand identity is as a flower with many petals. Picture a favorite flower and image that the components that comprise "you" - whether they are personal or social identities - are the petals on that flower.”
― Blair Imani, Read This to Get Smarter: About Race, Class, Gender, Disability, and More