Some people try to destroy you, precisely because they recognize your power.

Known for her groundbreaking works on the topic of intersectional feminism, writer and social activist bell hooks wrote honestly and elegantly about the challenges Black women face in society. She points out here that often, marginalized people who have achieved success, fame, and influence are targeted by those who fear the change that comes from empowerment. “Not because they don’t see [your power],” she said, “but because they see it and they don’t want it to exist.”