... many whites believe they're doing a good thing when they single out Black folk for having traits they don't normally associate with Blackness: hard work, clean character, sparkling intelligence. But that says more about white folk than Black folk. Thus, to compliment some Black folk for showcasing excellence in a number of pursuits is to tell on one's skepticism that Black culture is the breeding ground for such habits and traits. These figures and features of Black life are seen as "more than Black" -- not typically Black, hence not representatively Black, and thus not really Black at all.
-- Michael Eric Dyson, Long Time Coming, p. 191-192
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