"The Future is Together"

Yesterday I was engaged in a very interesting conversation with a friend about race. We shared our veiws with one another regarding the current state of affairs associated with color-based discrimination, institutional racism, and systemic racism as we saw them. As our conversation intensified, it become more of a heated debate as we discussed the future of the social construct known as race. I have to admit, I had fun because she was just as firm on her position as I was regarding mine. While I would love to give her position regarding our debate, I don't believe I can give it justice, but I what I will do is give a rendition of my position.

What is it going to take for “Race” to cross the finish line? Since before conception, I’ve been running…I’ve been running a race against an opponent that has almost a 400 year head start, and because the ancestors of that opponent deemed my ancestors inferior, they were forced to run with shackles around their ankles. While the opponents of our ancestor’s were able to make great strides in their lives, our ancestor’s were limited in the amount of forward progression they would be able to make at a time. It’s been 391 years since the first enslaved African arrived in the United States, 145 years since the end of legalized slavery, and 45 years, I said only 45 years since Jim Crows laws were deemed unconstitutional. Now in 2010, as we stand at the starting line, we are without the same restraints that limited the forward progression of our ancestor’s, at least that’s the way it appears before the race begins. Indeed, the shackles placed around our ancestor’s ankles have been removed for some time now, but the invisible hand of injustice is still holding us back as we are desperately trying to catch up. Imagine if you will, stepping up to the starting line of a race and seeing that you stand there alone. As you look before you, you can barely make out what appears to be your opponent standing 400 yards in front of you. Can this be called a fair race? Okay, Lets say Affirmative Action allows you to begin at the same starting point as your opponent. The race begins, but you are pulled over because you look suspicious, you don’t get the job you applied for because your name sounds too ethnic, you don’t get the loan you applied for because you are perceived to have bad credit, your child scores poorly on standardize tests because the assessment is biased and favors students with a socio-cultural background, or you have the same job position, degree and experience as a counterpart yet you are paid 34.9% less. How much harder or faster must we run just catch up, how much harder or faster can we run? The baton is now in our hands, passed on from the generation before us, and like them, we will have a responsibility to keep running. But today, today is different, this is the race where we as a people cross the finish line triumphant.
I speak of course of racism, institutional and systemic racism. Racism, that is invisible on the surface, yet it has the ability, and it has, to make an entire people’s progress seem like it’s moving in slow motion. Black people are only 13% of the population, yet as a race, we are disproportionately mal-affected in every statistical category; unemployment, AIDS outbreaks, high school dropout rates, teen pregnancy, and incarceration, and that’s only the tip of the iceberg. Throughout history, we as a people have made great strides to better the country we love and hold it to its ideals of equality and freedom, but as the invisible hand of injustice threatens to restrict us from ever being completely equal with our white counterparts, we seem to be running a race against “race” itself. Socially constructed by whites to justify societal and legal norms, the categorization of races perpetuates racism. Categorizing people based on visual traits such as skin color, facial features, or hair texture is a tool by the majority populous to manage people, and to covey the message that although we are all humans, we are fundamentally different. We are a strong and compassionate people, but we cannot allow a perceived notion of inferiority by some dictate the course of our fate. We are Americans! We’re not asking you, we’re telling you that we are Americans, and as Americans, we desire “Equality” and “Justice”. These are the very foundations of what this country is supposed to be built. America is indeed a great country, I love it with all my heart, but honestly, it is only great by default. This country has the potential to be the greatest ever, but it will never reach the height of greatness as long as there is a race against “race.” Some of the very institutions that guide this country are historically rooted in racism. Once upon a time in American history, there was legalized racism. We as Americans, white, black, yellow, etc. have to be able to openly and honest open a dialogue about race. We need to cease the categorization of Americans by the color of their skin, this very act is racist. It perpetuates identifying people based solely on the physical characteristics of their ancestry, instead of the content of the character they possess, which increases negative stereotypes, race-based discrimination, and the injustice of American citizens by its own country. For America to reach the height of greatness, and continue to be great in generations to come, “race” must not a perpetuated indicator of the differences between Americans. We are one people, and the only way to the future is together.