Derrick Bell Quotations

A rule without exceptions is an instrument capable of doing mischief to the innocent and bringing grief - as well as injustice - to those who should gain exemptions from the rule's functioning.

Courage is a decision you make to act in a way that works through your own fear for the greater good as opposed to pure self-interest. Courage means putting at risk your immediate self-interest for what you believe is right.

My wife says I spend my life trying to teach white folks. I'm not so sure I'm proud of it, but she's right.

Few whites are ready to actively promote civil rights for blacks.

The challenge throughout has been to tell what I view as the truth about racism without causing disabling despair.

Resistance is a powerful motivator precisely because it enables us to fulfill our longing to achieve our goals while letting us boldly recognize and name the obstacles to those achievements.

Power in the hands of the reformer is no less potentially corrupting than in the hands of the oppressor.

Slavery is, as an example of what white America has done, a constant reminder of what white America might do.

All ethical people strive to choose "right" over "easy" when confronted by situations that force them to choose one or the other.

Education leads to enlightenment. Enlightenment opens the way to empathy. Empathy foreshadows reform.

However self-sufficient we may fancy ourselves, we exist only in relation -- to our friend, family, and life partners; to those we teach and mentor; to our co-workers, neighbors, strangers; and even to forces we cannot fully conceive of, let alone define. In many ways, we are our relationships.

We live in a system that espouses merit, equality, and a level playing field, but exalts those with wealth, power, and celebrity, however gained.

Self-esteem is like a difficult-to-cultivate flower. It requires frequent nurturing that occurs when you keep your word and follow through on your promises.

Black people are the magical faces at the bottom of society's well. Even the poorest whites, those who must live their lives only a few levels above, gain their self-esteem by gazing down on us. Surely, they must know that their deliverance depends on letting down their ropes. Only by working together is escape possible. Over time, many reach out, but most simply watch, mesmerized into maintaining their unspoken commitment to keeping us where we are, at whatever cost to them or to us (Bell).

I live to harass white folks.

It appears that my worst fears have been realised: we have made progress in everything yet nothing has changed.

I go to readings by fiction writers like Alice Walker, and I'm envious of the level of attention they generate.