What 'Respectability' Means In The Fight For Social Change

05:51

March 21, 2019

Rosa Parks smiles during a ceremony where she received the Congressional Medal of Freedom in Detroit, Mich., Nov. 28, 1999. (Paul Sancya/AP) — Rosa Parks smiles during a ceremony where she received the Congressional Medal of Freedom in Detroit, Mich., on Nov. 28, 1999. (Paul Sancya/AP)

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What does it mean to be "respectable" in American life? For African-Americans, it's especially complicated. Gene Demby (@GeeDee215) from NPR's Code Switch team explains how the politics of respectability can be a tool for — and a weapon against — the fight for social change.

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