Alesha Dixon Quotes

When I grew up, I never saw anyone looking like me on TV, you know? I'm so glad to see a lot more of us on television, whether it's Mindy Kaling or it's Irrfan Khan or Freida Pinto. You know, I hope, like, little girls across the world can just look at me and say, 'Ah, I want to be that!' Indian or not, it shouldn't matter.

We always talk about how important representation is. It's so important to see someone that looks like you - whether you're African American, Asian, Indian or whatever your background is - doing incredible things. It's just motivation to go out there and do incredible things yourself.

My parents have taught me the value of reading and self-love through books that have characters that look like me and talk like me.

When I get to meet my audience when I go speak at colleges or when I'm walking down the street, it's been really eye-opening how many people have been touched to see someone that looks like them on television.

There is power in seeing a face that looks like yours do something, be someone. There is power in moving from the sidelines to the center.

Every fan interaction I have when someone tells me they can look to their television screens and see themselves reflected in me is a dream come true.

I feel I'll take on the responsibility of showing the world a whole different kind of Latin woman.

I think the Miss Universe title not only gives me the opportunity to become a role model for Latina girls around the world, but to show that beauty isn't just about the outside.

A hero that doesn't look like you makes you want to be something else.

When I was younger, I didn't have that type of person that I could look up to and be like, 'OK, this is someone who dresses like me and I relate to.' I didn't have that growing up, so to give that opportunity to a younger generation of women - and not just Somali women, but anyone who feels different - that means a lot to me.

I loved her music and the fact that she was a classically trained pianist and that her voice was so unique, but what made Nina Simone my hero is that I had never seen anyone in the public eye who looked anything like me at all, ever.

There's something to be said about seeing your face represented. There's just something really important about that. It just draws you in more.

As young people, you want to see people who in some way look like you to some degree, because it makes it a little easier for you to aspire to take on the qualities of those people.

It's hard to be what you can't see.

I'm inspired to post a lot of positive messages on my social media because, growing up, I felt as though I needed somebody that looked like me in the limelight or in entertainment to promote being different and promote accepting your differences.

I didn't see anybody in the media or on TV that played sports that looked like me. I didn't have those things growing up. Now that I'm in that position, I'm happy to be that person if I can.

I didn't see a lot of role models or women who looked like me on screen when I was growing up. For me, one thing that changed all of that was seeing Keke Palmer in 'Akeelah and The Bee.' That film made me realize that I wasn't an alien.

If you can't see it, you can't be it.

When you're trying to inspire individuals across the country, you have to have a reflection that people can see themselves in.

In the Royal Ballet Company, there was a Japanese principal dancer, and onstage and in ballet, they have colorblind castings - so I did see Asian dancers, and they were always my favorite. When you have someone who looks like you, it's something you can kind of grab onto, and it makes you feel better about your place in the world.

It's important for kids to see someone who looks like them carving his own path. I definitely acknowledge that, and I think it's super great.

It's important to see yourself represented.

Everybody wants somebody to look up to that looks like them so they can truly believe in that reality for themselves.

I know I'm representing a group - black, Latin, whatever you want to put me with - and I want to show that they are beautiful the way they are. I think that's really important for our youth to see.

I thought, 'Oh, this is great,' because maybe someone who does look like me will watch 'Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.' and realize that they can be an actor if they want to be, or they can be a superhero. They can have a hero that looks like them as well.