The white American man makes the white American woman maybe not superfluous but just a little kind of decoration. Not really important to turning around the wheels of the state. Well the black American woman has never been able to feel that way. No black American man at any time in our history in the United States has been able to feel that he didn't need that black woman right against him, shoulder to shoulder -- in that cotton field, on the auction block, in the ghetto, wherever.

Summary

This quote by civil rights activist and writer Malcolm X emphasizes the marginalized position of white American women in society, highlighting how they are sometimes seen as merely decorative and not integral to the functioning of the state. In contrast, black American women have always been viewed as essential and necessary for support and progress. Malcolm X draws attention to the history of black struggle and survival, acknowledging that black men couldn't have endured hardships without black women beside them, whether it be in slavery, exploitation, or marginalized urban communities.