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Alex Haley

Alex Haley Quotes

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Famous Alex Haley Quotes

“The first time he had taken the massa to one of these "high-falutin' to-dos," as Bell called them, Kunta had been all but overwhelmed by conflicting emotions: awe, indignation, envy, contempt, fascination, revulsion—but most of all a deep loneliness and melancholy from which it took him almost a week to recover. He couldn't believe that such incredible wealth actually existed, that people really lived that way. It took him a long time, and a great many more parties, to realize that they didn't live that way, that it was all strangely unreal, a kind of beautiful dream the white folks were having, a lie they were telling themselves: that goodness can come from badness, that it's possible to be civilized with one another without treating as human beings those whose blood, sweat, and mother's milk made possible the life of privilege they led.”

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Book:Roots: The Saga of an American Family
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“All of that Hollywood stuff! Like these women wanting men to pick them up and carry them across thresholds and some of them weigh more than you do. I don't know how many marriage breakups are caused by these movie and television addicted women expecting some bouquets and kissing and hugging and being swept out like Cinderella for dinner and dancing then getting mad when a poor, scraggly husband comes in tired and sweaty from working like a dog all day, looking for some food. ~Malcolm X”

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Book:The Autobiography of Malcolm X
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“It's always intrigued me that amidst the group called slaves there were individuals who were extremely able, who were extremely colorful, who were powerful personalities, who by no means fit the usual images of slaves. They were people who, through their personalities and abilities, were very respected in the community where they lived by both black and white.”

PeopleMeanAbleIndividualBlackCommunityAbilityWhitePowerfulGroupsPersonalityFitSlaveUsualBlack And WhiteColorfulIntrigued
Author:Alex Haley
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“In every conceivable manner, the family is link to our past, bridge to our future.”

InspirationalPastFamilyFutureMy FamilyMeaningfulAfrican AmericanBridgesOur FamilyLinksOur FutureOur PastAlexFamily LoveAbout FamilyFamily HistoryHappy FamilyInspirational Family LoveGreat FamilyBest FamilyInspirational FamilyFamily ReunionFunny FamilyFunny Family ReunionLike FamilyFamily TogethernessCute FamilyAmazing FamilyFamily GatheringSpiritual Family
Author:Alex Haley
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“Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children.”

LifeChildrenLittlesCan DoGrandmotherGrandfatherGrandparentGrandchildrenMy GrandmotherMy GrandfatherAlexGrandpaStardustChildren And GrandchildrenMy GrandchildrenGrandkidsParents And GrandparentsMy GrandmaYour GrandmotherGrandparents DaySprinklesGreat GrandfatherGrandchildren And GrandparentsGrandparents From GrandchildrenMother And GrandmotherGreat GrandparentsFunny GrandparentGreat GrandchildrenGreat GrandmotherGrandmother And GrandchildrenMother GrandmotherFunny GrandmotherBeing A GrandmotherGrand MotherHappy Mothers Day GrandmotherFunny GrandchildrenNana's And GrandchildrenHappy Grandparents DayFathers And GrandfathersGrandmas And MomsBeing A GrandmaMothers Day GrandmaBest GrandparentsGreat Grandpa
Author:Alex Haley
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“I travel a lot. It used to be, when I would go to any country, I could guarantee that the first question would establish my name, and the fact that I've written Roots, and the third question, at least no later than the fourth question would not be a question, so much as a statement, something like, "We understand that in America white people do such and such bad things to black people."”

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Author:Alex Haley
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“In all of us there is a hunger, marrow-deep, to know our heritage- to know who we are and where we have come from. Without this enriching knowledge, there is a hollow yearning. No matter what our attainments in life, there is still a vacuum, an emptiness, and the most disquieting loneliness.”

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Book:Alex Haley: The Man Who Traced America's Roots
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“I suppose that it was inevitable that my word-base broadened. I could now for the first time pick up a book and read and now begin to understand what the book was saying. Anyone who has read a great deal can imagine the new world that opened. Let me tell you something: from then until I left that prison, in every free moment I had, if I was not reading in the library, I was reading in my bunk. You couldn’t have gotten me out of my books with a wedge...Months passed without my even thinking about being imprisoned. In fact, up to then, I never had been so truly free in my life.”

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Author:Alex Haley
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“I certainly wasn't seeking any degree, the way a college confers a status symbol upon its students. My homemade education gave me, with every additional book that I read, a little bit more sensitivity to the deafness, dumbness and blindness that was afflicting the black race in America. Not long ago, an English writer telephoned me, asking questions. One was, "What's your alma mater?" I told him, "Books.”

WayLittlesLongBookAmericaBitsBlackRaceStudentsCollegeDegreesLittle BitAskingSeekingSymbolsLong AgoSensitivityBlindnessAsking QuestionsDeafnessHomemadeRace In AmericaStatus SymbolDumbnessBlack RaceAlma Mater
Author:Alex Haley
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