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by Greg Coach T. Thomas (Author), David Smale (Joint Author)
Racism is an issue that is older than the United States itself. Before the 13 colonies became united, there was a wide chasm between the races. From the very beginning, Whites primarily have been treated better than Blacks, strictly because of the color of their skin. Most, if not all, of our founding fathers owned slaves, and it was an accepted practice. Even after the end of the Civil War, which ended slavery strictly from a legal standpoint, Blacks had a difficult time finding opportunity to improve their status. Although Blacks no longer could be owned, for the most part they had no education or marketable skills. The only thing they knew was how to pick cotton and work menial jobs. Whites had little interest in relinquishing their superior status, and Blacks had no recourse. Within a couple of decades after the Civil War, legislation was passed that made the common attitude of White superiority legally accepted. Treating Blacks as less than human was accepted and expected. The problem was worse in the former slave states in the South, but pigmentation often was the most determining factor regarding opportunity for a vast majority of Americans. The Civil Rights Movement of the mid-1900s helped make great progress, including fully giving Blacks the right to vote in 1965, but the problems were not solved. If anything, the attitudes that created the divide became even more entrenched. This is not just a history lesson. Racism still exists today. You can't turn on the news without seeing stories of racial turmoil, most often in our inner-cities. It might be better than it was 350 years ago. It might be better than it was 150 years ago. It might even be better than it was 50 years ago. But it's still very real. It's not a skin-color issue. It's not an economic issue. It's not a geographic issue. A lot of those things may enter into the equation, but they're not the root of the problem. The urban versus suburban divide may be caused by racism, but it doesn't cause r
