Most people have the ability to turn their empathy engine back on, but there's such a seductive burn to not being empathetic. W. Kamau Bell More Quotes by W. Kamau Bell More Quotes From W. Kamau Bell You pretty much have to be bad at it [stand-up] for several years to get good at it, so there's no avoiding embarrassing yourself. W. Kamau Bell avoidingembarrassingyears I think the need to go on stage speaks to some sort of a profound psychological deficit, but something that happened when you were a kid. Or something your parents did. W. Kamau Bell profoundkidsthinking That's the nature of my [stand-up] act: black man with a white baby. W. Kamau Bell whitebabymen For some people, the definition of who is and who isn't an American defies logic, historical accuracy, common sense, decency, good manners, the milk of human kindness, enjoyment in the good things in life, and love of good food. W. Kamau Bell goodkindnesslovelife There's a lot of power in laughter. W. Kamau Bell lotlaughterpower I can't imagine what it must be like to be one of the indigenous people of the United States of America. I can't imagine watching the news every day - as people debate whose country this is and who should be in charge of it and how to make it great again - and hardly ever see your people brought into the discussion. W. Kamau Bell daygreatdebatepeople Atheism is like the highest level of white privilege. It's like having a black belt in white privilege. W. Kamau Bell likeprivilegeblackwhite I have always had a strange relationship to Portland, Oregon. It's a great city. The people who live there love it openly and loudly, and it regularly appears on the lists of best American cities. But something has always felt weird to me about Portland. And not in the way Portlanders mean 'weird' in their slogan 'Keep Portland weird.' W. Kamau Bell bestmeloverelationship I am proud to be black man. W. Kamau Bell i-ammanblackproud I'm happy that I know how to speak 'Southern.' I spent a lot of time in Alabama throughout my life. I even lived there for part of junior high and high school, so I learned the true beauty and mastery of the Southern dialect. 'Y'all' is one of the greatest and most useful words ever invented. W. Kamau Bell my-lifetimebeautylife We all need to make sure that we fully understand our country. W. Kamau Bell makeneedunderstandcountry The citizens of Puerto Rico pay taxes with no representation every day, because Puerto Rico is not a state. And the rules only became more confusing the more I looked into them during my time there. W. Kamau Bell every-dayrulesdaytime If we go the direction that many of the leaders of this country want and close the borders and discourage new immigrants, then we are ruining the possibility of new ideas and new experiences. W. Kamau Bell directionnewcountryideas There were definitely a few ways I could have gone after 'Totally Biased' ended. One of those was getting a job at Starbucks. W. Kamau Bell thosejobstarbucksgone I keep trying to write the crowd-pleasing slavery joke and the crowd-pleasing reparations joke, but any time you mention slavery or reparations in any detail, it seems to bum lots of people out. That's a challenge I keep putting in front of myself. W. Kamau Bell myselfyoutimepeople Throughout my career and my life, I talk a lot about racism in this country, and if you're going to talk about it, then you're going to eventually come to the chapter about the Klan. W. Kamau Bell my-lifeyouracismlife People always want narratives to be clean and easy. W. Kamau Bell alwayseasywantpeople In the deep corner of my heart, I'm a Chicagoan, but it's been covered over by 20 years of living in the Bay Area. W. Kamau Bell deepoverlivingheart I feel like, as a black guy, I can't not believe in God... I'd wake up in the morning, 'I'm black, and there's no God? I'm going back to sleep.' W. Kamau Bell blackgodsleepmorning I grew up in a household where we talked about race all the time, and that's sort of in me. So if I become the Anthony Bourdain of race and culture, then great! W. Kamau Bell greatmetimeculture
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