Is the capacity for cruelty inherent in all of us? Soledad O'Brien More Quotes by Soledad O'Brien More Quotes From Soledad O'Brien I grew up in a family of educators - my dad was a professor, my mom was a high school grammar and French teacher - so certainly my entire life education was stressed as incredibly important. And I think especially for my parents, who are both immigrants, and when immigrants come to this country, they understand that education is something that no one can take from them. You might leave the country with absolutely nothing, but no one can take your education from you. Soledad O'Brien mom teacher country A smart politician needs to come in and create a plan for when our students graduate college, there are opportunities in fields that interest them and a job that's a career. A president whose plans can embrace and incorporate every millennial will be successful. Soledad O'Brien smart successful jobs People want to know how do they pay for education and they want to figure out how to find and maintain meaningful employment. Education and the economy are polled by Latinos as the top two most important issues. But those are also the issues that everyone cares about, regardless of race; so we don't need to be divided over it. Soledad O'Brien race meaningful two When we think about the issues that matter, obviously the news covers immigration, a lot. You might think immigration is the only story that actually affects us but when you poll Latinos you'll see that education is the number one topic that they're interested in talking about and economy is the second issue. Soledad O'Brien numbers talking thinking When we feel pressured to have achieved certain things by a particular age, it could ultimately hinder us. It's great to have goals but those specific benchmarks can easily become irrelevant once you ask yourself, 'where am I having the most impact?' 'Am I going after the stories I want to tell?' Soledad O'Brien impact goal age It doesn't upset me when people are annoyed or bothered by what may seem to them as a redundancy of topics about blacks and Latinos. As a reporter I welcome those types of conversations and dialogues. Even when it's uncomfortable, it's still necessary. Soledad O'Brien upset annoyed people I'm a big believer that there's more power in numbers and the more you can expand the stories that are relevant to both communities, the better. For example, a school that's terrible for black kids is terrible for brown kids. We have to figure out ways to navigate the school systems and make sure that we're investing in a public education system that's beneficial for all kids. Soledad O'Brien numbers kids school I don't think being beautiful takes away from your credibility. Soledad O'Brien being-beautiful beautiful thinking I look forward to beginning a relationship with Al Jazeera America, which has made a commitment to producing quality programming and pursuing underreported stories. Soledad O'Brien quality america commitment It is a sad day for our country when the moral foundation of our law and the acknowledgment of God has to be hidden from public view to appease a federal judge. Soledad O'Brien views law country I don't think journalism changes. It's about digging into stories and telling them well. The basic tenets of great reporting stay the same while things around it change. Technology has made reporting easier, but it has also caused job loss. Social media has increased discussion around topics, but it has its own challenges at times. Soledad O'Brien great social-media technology change Stories, as we're taught in journalism school early on, are told through people. Those stories make our documentaries powerful. You can explore someone's culture, you can explore their experience, you can explore an issue through human beings who are going through it. Soledad O'Brien you experience culture people I have four relatively small children, and around fourth grade, they start doing big projects on Native Americas: everything is Native Americans in elementary school. Do you know how many Native American dresses I've sewn, on and on; it's a full yearlong study. And then never again. As journalists, we never even cover Native Americans. Soledad O'Brien start you children school When I was 13, I began relaxing my hair, and that meant when I turned 18 it began to crack and fall off, and when I began anchoring, I had short, stubbly pieces of hair. And trying to report in San Francisco with fog meant my hair swelled. Soledad O'Brien short fog hair fall On Sunday night, my husband makes a five-course family dinner. Soledad O'Brien dinner family husband night Being an entrepreneur is a mindset. You have to see things as opportunities all the time. I like to do interviews. I like to push people on certain topics. I like to dig into the stories where there's not necessarily a right or wrong answer. Soledad O'Brien push you time people When I was leaving NBC News to go to CNN, people would say, 'What?! Why would you possibly leave the 'Today Show' to go to cable?' If I would've listened to people, I would've been on a great platform, but I wouldn't have grown as a journalist. So far, most of the steps in my career have been really good. Soledad O'Brien good you today people I have a philosophy that white people would be interested in Native Americans because, first of all, it's probably the only group as a country we all study and know the history and then never study again past the age of 10. So I think we have these things we believe are true, that are just not true about what an audience wants. Soledad O'Brien age history people past Investing in girls can actually move the needle in communities... and can actually benefit boys, because girls are the mothers of boys. Soledad O'Brien needle benefit move because I covered Katrina, I've covered the tsunamis, all of them, the Haiti earthquake... you get to a certain point in your career where you say, 'I want to now cover what I want to cover.' Soledad O'Brien earthquake your you want