Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2023 | 2 a.m.
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Despite the Supreme Court’s 1954 decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which declared that separate is not equal, and is therefore unfair, many schools in the United States today are almost totally segregated.
Black students are suspended, expelled and disciplined more harshly and at significantly higher rates than white counterparts. And police in many locations profile and stop Black students at a disproportionate rate.
Many white people still harbor irrational and unwarranted fear of Black people and many believe consciously or unconsciously that white people are genetically superior. Most white people have limited or rare occasions to interact with people with darker skin because of differing financial, employment and social circumstances. Many actively discriminate, even if unintentionally.
If you don’t approve of racist attitudes and policies, have you ever gone out of your way to let family members, friends and coworkers know you expect them to treat everyone with dignity and respect irrespective of race? Genetic variations between races are negligible.
If you haven’t been proactive or attended a school board meeting to demand that all students receive instruction on the history of slavery, Jim Crow, and the chronic abuses and discrimination prevalent for centuries, you may have good reason to feel ashamed or guilty, even though your ancestors didn’t own slaves. The problem is not merely past brutality or critical race theory. The problem is inequality and unfairness happening today.
