quote · Legacy record
Black people are not the descendants of kings. We are—and I say this with big pride—the progeny of slaves. If there’s any majesty in our struggle, it lies not in fairy tales but in those humble origins and the great distance we’ve traveled since. Ditto for the dreams of a separate but noble past. Cosby’s, and much of black America’s, conservative analysis flattens history and smooths over the wrinkles that have characterized black America since its inception.
Black people are not the descendants of kings. We are—and I say this with big pride—the progeny of slaves. If there’s any majesty in our struggle, it lies not in fairy tales but in those humble origins and the great distance we’ve traveled since. Ditto for the dreams of a separate but noble past. Cosby’s, and much of black America’s, conservative analysis flattens history and smooths over the wrinkles that have characterized black America since its inception.
Approximate author period: c. 1975 AD · modern
Meaning not yet available
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- Author or tradition
- Ta-Nehisi Coates
Attribution: attributed - Country attributed
- Not established
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- Approximate author period: c. 1975 AD · modern
Approximate author-period anchor from documented birth year 1975; activity date not established; Wikidata Q15452495, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q15452495 (accessed 2026-10-08). Not a quotation composition date.
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Supplied reference C; CSV row 241701; supplied attribution, independently unverified
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