RACISM 

Editorial

        Is the United States a racist country? Yes, but the racism is not limited to whites against Blacks. There is racism of Blacks against whites. If a Black man is successful, he is accused of being white. Black people have Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton who, in the opinion of white citizens, are brazenly racist and cultivate racism to make a living.

        No one can question that we have had a bad past. Colored people had to ride in the back of buses, drink from “Black” water fountains, use their own bathrooms, sleep in hotels different from those for whites, and were not allowed in the best restaurants. We have had a catalog of disgusting habits toward Black people, worse than that for other minorities.

        Our racism began with slavery and continued until only a few decades ago. We still have racism as described by Charles Barkley in his excellent book, I May Be Wrong, but I Doubt It. Growing up in Atlanta was different, he said, where you felt all the time the difference between races, and the resentment of each to the other.

        Slaves were different from their aristocratic masters, without education or culture, or a culture that whites couldn’t appreciate. The slaves were chattels, limited to humble work, and knowing only obedience and menial work. Also, they were physically different, being Black, slow of speech, and with peculiarities of speech and behavior limited to their group. They even had their own churches, or sat by themselves if they were in the same church. It was felt that they did not belong in white society. This separation of cultures and living habits was accepted by most if not by all.

        Some Blacks revolted and demanded that they go to the same schools as whites, and President Eisenhower opened the doors of southern schools on the university level with the help of the army. President Nixon’s name is almost a curse-word in popular speech, but he was responsible for outlawing the equal but separate schools of the south on the grade and high school level. According to George Schulz, his Secretary of Labor, he did this with eloquence, passion, and conviction. James Meredith was the first Black student at the University of Mississippi, opening the doors for millions. He served in the Air Force from 1951 to 1960, including a tour in Japan, and then attended Jackson State College for two years. Entering the University of Mississippi in 1962 under military escort, he sparked a riot that left two dead. In 1966 he organized the “Walk Against Fear” to protest the physical violence faced by African-Americans in trying to vote. A sniper shot him on the march but he resumed the march as soon as he was able. In 1968 he received a LL.B. degree from Columbia University.

        James Meredith ran for office in 1972, under what party label I do not know. He was on the staff of Senator Jesse Helms for a time beginning in 1989. He and Senator Jesse Helms had become friends and Meredith wanted access to historical records in the Library of Congress. His hope is to be remembered as one who pursued his constitutional rights and not as a civil rights demonstrator. He opened the door for those of his race and thought he had done enough when he had done that. Blacks could choose whether or not they took advantage of what he had done.

        The present impatience of whites against Blacks is that they cry more than they try. The doors are open to whatever they want to be or do, but they keep talking about race and demand special privileges. They have lived in the country a long time, and whites feel that it is time they grew up and made it on their own. Other minorities do. If they cannot make it on their own, they will have to be satisfied with a humble place in society.

        The Democratic Party has the support of Blacks by promising them money and accusing the Republicans of being racist, but we should remember that the Republicans freed the slaves; Democrats kept them in subjection. Republicans Eisenhower and Nixon opened schools for Blacks nationally and locally. The present pursuit of Blacks by Democrats, promising money, has produced no benefit to the Blacks and keeps them in subjection, the modern form of slavery.

        Affirmative action assumes that Blacks and other minorities should be admitted to prestigious universities because of prior handicaps. At one time in my life I was recommended to a medical specialist. When I met him, he seemed like a nice man, but he was Black. I wondered if he became a specialist because he was Black. How can you help feeling otherwise when you know Blacks are favored because of the color of their skin?

        The most insulting reason for affirmative action was spoken by Francis Lawrence, former president of Rutgers University. “The average SAT score for African-Americans is 750. Do we set standards in the future so we don’t admit anybody? Or do we deal with a disadvantaged population that doesn't have that genetic, hereditary background to have a higher average?” (Italics added.) I do not believe Blacks have a genetic background that condemns them to stupidity. We are familiar with Blacks who are brilliant. There is nothing wrong with their genetics or their character.

        Charles Barkley said of Hispanics,

The people I met in the Hispanic communities in Arizona were incredibly hard-working. The Hispanic people I met came into a new country, did the most menial jobs in a lot of cases, took whatever work they could get without bitching or complaining, and did everything with honor and pride.

The Blacks need to earn a like reputation. Many of them are hard-working and honest, of course, but the reputation of the race as a whole needs improvement and is hurt by their constant complaints.

        One of the problems of the Black population is that they are awed by the wonderful Black athletes they see on television. Charley Barkley, one of the best basketball players in the history of the sport, says “I don’t think athletics are good for Black kids.”

Every time I go and talk to Black children or teenagers at a school or at an event, they only want to play sports. I’ll ask them what they want to do after high school or about their plans in the next few years and it’s always, “I want to play pro basketball” or “I want to play in the NFL.” Every single one, it seems to me, wants to play sports for a living. It’s like there’s some mental block, or they’ve been conditioned or brainwashed to feel they can’t do anything but play sports. And it’s scary to me. It bothers me. Obviously, I’m not against sports; I’m thankful for everything a career in professional sports has given me. But I don’t know of any other culture where the children all want to do the same thing. I’ve never heard of any other situation like that.

        Blacks and other minorities, but particularly Blacks, are given preference in college admissions under affirmative action. At the University of Michigan, SAT scores on average for Blacks are 230 points lower than those of whites out of a possible 1600 but their chances of admission compared with whites are 174-to-1. Racial preferences are present in medical schools. Black students at the Maryland School of Medicine had test scores and science grades no better than or, in many cases, worse, than the least prepared Hispanic, Asian, and White students admitted. Of those who stayed in the program, one in four Blacks failed the first step of the test for licensing whereas two whites out of 81 failed. Of those who completed four years and took the second test for licensing, one quarter of the Blacks failed but no whites or Asians.

        Giving Blacks special treatment is supposed to be good for them and good for whites who, it is supposed, will get to like people who are different from themselves if they are compelled to live with them. The opposite may be the result.

        Preferences are given because of “hardship.” Linda Chavez tells of traveling the country to visit children of migrant workers. Many of them changed schools two or three times each year, lived in substandard housing, often with several generations and multiple families under the same roof. Yet they stayed in school and earned decent grades.

        UCLA gave no special “hardship” consideration to a Korean student who helped nurse his mother through breast cancer, working after school to pay the family’s rent, while admitting a Mexican-America student who had an almost identical story but with test scores 390 points lower than the Korean.

        Blacks know they will get preferences if they can prove hardship, so they make an effort to prove they are victims of misfortune. Middle class and affluent Hispanics are searching for ways to make their lives appear more difficult than they are so their chances of admission will be increased. We are cultivating victim-abuse pleaders.

        Thomas Sowell, a Black man and an eminent scholar, points out that where the test scores of Blacks and whites are similar so are the graduation rates. Where there are wide gaps in test scores, there are wide differences in graduation rates. At the flagship University of Colorado Boulder, where the average SAT scores for Blacks was more than 200 points lower than that of white students, 39 percent of Black students graduated compared with 72 percent of whites. At the University of Colorado at Denver, where the difference in SAT scores was only 30 points, half of all back students and 48 percent of white students graduated within six years.

        There is racism in the world, and not only to and by Blacks. The French suspect the Germans and consider themselves Europe’s cultural aristocrats. The English do not approve of Italians, who consider the English duds. The Irish consider the English harsh conquerors. I suppose every nation in Europe has prejudice against every other nation. The European Union is supposed to do away with that nonsense, but my guess is that history is stronger than utopian dreams.

        In the United States, the problem is racial tension between Blacks and whites. This will be reduced by the Blacks getting their houses in order. There may be more to it than that, and the whites may have to be more tolerant than they are, but the fact remains Blacks have to get their houses in better order. There is an enormous amount of Black-on -Black crime. If a white person does something wrong to a Black man, he is called a racist and there is national coverage on television. Jesse Jackson gets on his high horse and makes speeches. If a Black commits a crime against a white person, the press is silent. Color of the skin is not mentioned. The fact remains there is an enormous amount of Black-on-Black crime. There is a great amount of teenage pregnancy in the Black community, and many if not most families are without resident fathers. This is probably the biggest handicap to successful lives for the Blacks. In fairness to whites, I believe it accurate to say that prejudice disappears the moment it is clear a Black man is worthy of respect. When Kirby Puckett was a star with the Minnesota Twins, he was loved by all. When we learned he was violent to his wife, we changed our minds. It had nothing to do with race but had everything to do with decency.

        Life has got worse for young Blacks in crowded cities. When Charles Barkley was growing up the drunks who didn’t amount to much were protective, going out of their way to try to keep young Blacks out of trouble. The bums lived in the gutter and knew how hard it was to climb out; they told young kids to keep away from drink and drugs and crime.  Now, the drunks and addicts try to pull the kids down, rather than pushing them into a better world. This led Barkley to expand charitable work to spending time with kids in their neighborhoods. Speaking at schools and camps wasn’t enough. The need was to go where the problems were.

        The most powerful influence in Barkley’s life was his grandmother. Whatever Grandma said was it. There was no vote. If you didn’t do what you were told, you had a whipping. Grandma worked at a meat packing factory. Mom was a maid. They were too busy and too poor to put up with nonsense. There was a father, but he was never in the house. Later in life, his only interest in his famous son was to show him off. Charles was the father figure for his two younger brothers. He took care of them, and he was also in charge of the housecleaning.

        Young Blacks need role models other than athletes. The problem is they don’t think they know any. They are wrong. The nine-to-five fellow who cleans the streets or works in the local grocery store can be a fine role model. Any honest, hard-working person is a role model. He doesn’t have to be famous. The famous can be role models to their children, because they live with them. Whether they are good or bad role models has nothing to do with being famous. The solution is having practical goals and working hard.

        There are some profoundly evil people in the world.  It has nothing to do with race. These beasts who terrorize others are indescribably evil. So are the kidnappers, rapists, kids who shoot other kids and their teachers. That such evil exists must remind us that we are in this world together and we have to pull together to make it better than it is. Kindness is needed to each and everyone. Race is irrelevant. Every person is worthy or not depending on his merits.     Ω