A few observations:
1.) Actually, blacks were considered only 3/5 of a person in the Founding Fathers' eyes, the same men who proclaimed that this country was free for all and that all were equal...
2.) While it is true that many groups, like the Jewish people, have been discriminated against, killed, beaten, etc., I think that Native Americans and Africans, brought to America FOR THE EXPRESS PURPOSE OF LABOR (first as indentured servants, then as slaves) are the only groups who have been enslaved through both legal and de facto means IN THIS COUNTRY, THE ONE THAT PRIDES ITSELF ON FREEDOM, EQUALITY, AND JUSTICE FOR ALL. That's a shameful history, one that was/is reinforced through Jim Crow laws (that were in force not so long ago), restrictive convenants (in which whites agree not to sell their homes to blacks, EVER), redlining (banks refusing to loan money in the same minority communities in which they receive deposits), steering (real estate agents making concerted efforts to steer blacks into only certain neighborhoods), job discrimination (having senior business executives make not only disparaging remarks about blacks while in board meetings, but carrying out discriminatory policies-Texaco), and the list goes on and on and on and on and on and on.....
3.)It's disengenous for anyone to try and absolve themselves of the responsibility to work toward change by saying their nor their ancestors owned slaves. Clearly, discrimination, racial violence (hey, whites burned up whole black towns in OK and FL in THIS CENTURY, just cuz they felt like it), and racial intolerance have all lingered with us (meaning ALL Americans) long after slavery ended.
4.)To those who asked what you can do: stop whining about how put upon you feel about having to read/hear about blacks' pain and hostility-talk to my sharecropping grandparents who could barely read but yet built a successful business and sent their kids to school, all while being discriminated against, then tell me how 'silly' this all is; read/watch historical pieces about the struggle/achievements of blacks in this country; form personal relationships with those different than you; participate in civic and social organizations that are working toward change; and admit that as an American, you were raised with at least SOME type of prejudice. This will go a long way toward understanding/helping the situation.
Peace and God speed to all!
DG
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