Racial Pressure Quotes

When you are in the public eye as a person of color, you are given very little room to mess up.

Blacks—across the economic and ideological spectrum—often feel astonishingly vulnerable, of accusations of disloyalty to race.

You know, it helps having an African American driver behind the wheel. I'm representing that culture and that background. But a lot of background pressure, I don't really put that on me. I know I have enough pressure to go out and perform every week.

The perception of linked fate and that feeling of being always on the spot as a representative of the race, at least in mixed company, are features of African American life that predate affirmative action and arise outside of its presence.

That's the way blacks have been encouraged to think: that we got to stick together. You've got a situation today where if a black person says he thinks O.J. Simpson's guilty, other blacks will cut their eyes at him and say, 'You ought to go somewhere and sit down and shut up.'

To prevent enabling oppression, we demand that black people be twice as good. To prevent verifying stereotypes, we pledge to never eat a slice a watermelon in front of white people.

I was a black kid in an all-white school, so I had to deal with some of that stress and pressure.

I think black women feel an obligatory pressure to be stronger than everybody else, not necessarily to suppress the pain.

I think the stakes are always high when you're an artist of color - to get things right, to get things perfect and make everybody happy.

Black boys shouldn't have to feel that being good at sports is the only way to be cool - or to be valued by the world.

You look at how Barack Obama has had to conduct himself as president. It reminds me of Jackie Robinson, how he had to be very careful to reassure people that this was all right.

Since I became a favorite in every race, it's just another burden that I have to bear.

I've already got 10,000 more eyes on me because I am of color and they're going to see what I can do in the top series. That's enough pressure in itself, so I don't need to add extra pressure.

Black athletes are always under more scrutiny.

So if you're black or brown, you can make money in America, you can get rich in America... but whatever you decide to do, it better be positive, 'cause if one person is harmed, you will be destroyed. You see Oprah, she just be giving away money. She's doing that to keep the Feds off her back.

We put stereotypes on ourselves. Everybody does that. But I think it's just a little harder for black kids to just be who they are.

There is this feeling among black artists that you have to be really careful. We're not inclined to talk about this stuff because, if we do, we put ourselves in a position where we're not marketable or where we can't win.

Some days, I do feel that pressure of, 'What do I mean as a black woman? What am I representing?' It honestly just gives me anxiety.

Listen, I was the first black manager in baseball and there was incredible pressure. I don't blame anyone else. I was too tough . . . I lack patience. I probably got on guys a little too hard, with the wrong tone of voice.

A film centered around the Second World War with a predominantly white cast would not have the pressure on it that 'Red Tails' has.

I’ve always operated on the theory that I’d better be better and cleaner than my white counterparts.