Anna Deavere Smith
Anna Deavere Smith
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionActress
Date of Birth18 September 1950
CountryUnited States of America
doe exploration explorers
You are an explorer. You understand that every time you go into the studio, you are after something that does not yet exist.
black boys chase chasing culture gate guards incredible living major midst obvious reaction seen usc white
I think a lot of L.A. is something like USC - this incredible white culture living in the midst of color, and no obvious reaction to it at all. I mean, they have guards at the gate at USC - guards at the gate of a major university! And the guards chase young black boys away - I've seen it, chasing 8-year-old boys.
active doctors fact people stepping ways
We would like doctors to listen, but the fact is, we better be ready to be able to talk to them. You're going to have to be an active participant in that conversation, so I'd say the American people are going to need ways of stepping up to the conversation.
gotten richer students time
Over time, my students have gotten richer and more educated.
Not that many people, even contemporary writers, write about right now.
life
In my own life I'm frequently in predominantly white atmospheres.
people
You know, all kinds of people inspire me.
came debates race since talk talking willing work
I talk about race a lot. It's been my work ever since I came out of acting school. But it's true that in a way talking about race is a taboo. Because so many of our debates about race have to do not with race but with what we are willing to see, what we will not see and what we don't want to see.
artists came decided far home possible school specific terms
I made a real specific decision when I came out of school and most artists were writing about home - if you were a woman, you were writing about being a woman - and I decided not to do that, write about what you know. That's not what I do. I went as far away from home as possible in terms of the development of my imagination.
baltimore came course people
Because of the generation in which I came into the world, there were expectations. Of course there were expectations. It was something having to do with being a respectable Negro woman who would make the people in Baltimore proud.
break change
When you think about it, words can break your heart, or they can change your day.
african came life respect strong
To live your life well, and have respect for what came before or after - there's a strong respect for that in African culture.
There's not a lot of flash about me.
war stress thinking
People realize that we're very good at sending people to war, but we're not good at taking care of them. And people are coming back from war now; years ago, they would have been killed, now they're wounded; and they're coming back alive and with post-traumatic stress. So, I think Americans are sensible enough to know we've got to figure out a way to take care of them.