that crumbs are not the same as a place at the table?
What does that mean?

The full sentence is;
And I understood her to being saying that concessions confer only a little humanity, where full humanity is due, that crumbs are not the same as a place at the table, which is to say you can forge meaning and build identity and still be mad as hell.

A whole speech is here at 7:07
http://www.ted.com/talks/andrew_solomon_how_the_worst_moments_in_our_lives_make_us_who_we_are/transcript#t-4192

Thank you!

Question

that crumbs are not the same as a place at the table?
What does that mean?

The full sentence is;
And I understood her to being saying that concessions confer only a little humanity, where full humanity is due, that crumbs are not the same as a place at the table, which is to say you can forge meaning and build identity and still be mad as hell.

A whole speech is here at 7:07
http://www.ted.com/talks/andrew_solomon_how_the_worst_moments_in_our_lives_make_us_who_we_are/transcript#t-4192

Thank you!

Answer

Crumbs are not the same as a place at the table.
Literally , it is comparing a fragment of someone's else food to sitting down at a table and eating a full meal.

In the context of this talk about the changes in Myanmar, he is saying that the small political changes are not the equivalent of full political and human rights.