Racism in America Today

Racism is alive and well in America today. It is inescapable and it is a fact. In the recent elections, black voters were told that Republicans were systematically trying to disenfranchise them. According to columnist Larry Elder, John Kerry claimed that 1,000,000 black voters were disenfranchised in the 2000 election.

The Bush Administration and Republicans are constantly criticized for being racist. Among Bush's sins, not accepting an invitation to speak at the NAACP meeting this year. Of course the NAACP is a liberal organization that supports Democratic candidates but Bush's refusal is deemed racist.

President Bush has made top level cabinet appointments of minorities like Colin Powell, Condoleeza Rica, Rod Paige, Elaine Chao and  Norm Mineta. Of course Democrats say this is pandering or window-dressing.

It seems that when it comes to race — you can't win for losing.

Take for example Dr. Condoleeza Rice. President Bush has nominated Dr. Rice for to replace Colin Powell as Secretary of State. Dr. Rice served honorably as President Bush's National Security Adviser, yet a Madison, Wisconsin radio talk show host calls her an Aunt Jemima. 

Dr. Rice  is not controversial because she is a black woman. She is controversial because she is a black woman who is conservative and supports President Bush. She has betrayed her race and her sex in order to cozy up to 'da man.

In this racist country and thanks to affirmative action, whenever a black person achieves success in our society they are suspect. People wonder whether they are just tokens, or have they been given special consideration because of their race.

Even the recent controversy about Nicolette Sheridan and Terell Owens and their pre-game gaffe had racial overtones. Black Entertainment Television had a forum on the issue and the majority of comments were on the racist nature of the controversy. Isn't the very idea of Black Entertainment Television itself racist? Can you imagine a White Entertainment Television network?

The problem is that in this country, in our attempt to avoid being racist we do exactly the opposite — we recognize race and make it an issue everywhere.  Laws that take away the voting rights of incarcerated felons are currently being challenged in our courts. Not because anyone thinks felons should have the right to vote but because these laws are considered racist.  How are these laws racist? The Logic goes like this, blacks make up a disproportionate amount of the prison population, the law disenfanchises prisoners, therefore the law is designed to disenfranchise blacks, therefore it is in violation of the Voting Rights Act.

In his I Have a Dream speech, Dr. Martin Luther King said:

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today.

Whenever I fill out a form, rather than checking all the boxes that apply (Asian, Pacific Islander, Native American, African) I always decline. I have a daughter, who is working in the United States Congress as a Page. Now I don't know if it will be practical but, she has resolved that when she goes to college, she will not accept any money on the basis of her race or sex. I could not be any more proud of her.

It is my daughter who is living Dr. King's dream.