Black or White Quotes

Context

This line is from the song "Black or White" by Michael Jackson from the album Dangerous (1991).

Once upon a time, people watched music videos on television, and Michael Jackson was their fairy godfather, granting wishes in the form of epic music videos like "Thriller" and "Black and White." 

"Black and White" featured high-profile celebrity cameos of the nineties like that kid from Home Alone and Norm from Cheers. Once your eyes adjusted to the light cast by such blinding celebrity wattage, you were treated to a song of a racial harmony, with a video featuring Michael Jackson's amazing dance moves and a ton of racial stereotypes which seem counterintuitive to the message of the song.

But, hey, nothing's perfect.

At the end, a bunch of people lip-sync to the song and morph into each other. These state-of-the-art special effects show us that we're all the same. Yes, we are all large Asian men and we are all Tyra Banks.

Where you've heard it

The song's message of racial harmony was lost because, at the time, people had no idea if Michael Jackson himself was black or white. Sadly, that means you most often hear the song referenced in regards to the singer's alleged skin condition.

Pretentious Factor

If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.

If you're using this song to heal the world and make it a better place, you're good to go.