Nick Brown

“I do not believe all religions lead to God because no religion leads to God. Religion does not lead people to
God any more than cups quench your thirst.”
― Bruxy Cavey, The End of Religion: Encountering the Subversive Spirituality of Jesus

“When you believe niceness disproves the presence of racism, it’s easy to start believing bigotry is rare, and that the label racist should be applied only to mean-spirited, intentional acts of discrimination. The problem with this framework—besides being a gross misunderstanding of how racism operates in systems and structures enabled by nice people—is that it obligates me to be nice in return, rather than truthful. I am expected to come closer to the racists. Be nicer to them. Coddle them.”
― Austin Channing Brown, I'm Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness

“I think people should spend more on experiences and less on stuff, but then again, within the context of affordability.”
― David Chilton, The Wealthy Barber: The Common Sense Guide to Successful Financial Planning

“Portions of the African American community, like most ethnic minority groups in America, still espouse a doctrine of respectability. Today, when we discuss issues around mass incarceration and police brutality, too often the conversation turns toward how black people should act: pulling up pants, taking out earrings, and speaking “properly,” as if such behavior merits being treated as less than human. In the early twenty–first century, Bill Cosby went on tour to critique black people for not living up to the standards of white dominant culture. While some of his points were about personal responsibility, much of it was about dominant cultural respectability. He even at times made fun of African Americans’ names. As we’ve seen, this mind–set, as deeply colonized as it was, has a long history.”
― Drew G.I. Hart, Trouble I've Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism