Race of Racism in America

Life is a race. A multi-generational race. Where you start depends on where your parents were in the race; the obstacles in your path depend upon how you grow up, the education your receive, the support you have behind you. And the color of your skin.

In America, the white man (and it was only men who were allowed to run) started with an open path. He ran hard and fast. The black man was in chains – he couldn’t run at all. At some point the white man stopped and turned around. He realized it wasn’t a race at all and called for the black man to be cut free. The black man began to run and the white man continued on his way, comfortable with his large lead.

The black man found many hurdles in his path. Voting obstructions, Jim Crow laws, lynchings. Not surprisingly, he couldn’t catch up. Eventually the white man paused once again. He looked far behind him and dictated the hurdles be removed. He continued on his way.

Some of the hurdles were gone, but the path of the black man was still a rough road. Racism hadn’t been removed by decree. The white man was far out front and still running hard. The black man couldn’t catch up.

Today the white man is still out front. Some look back and don’t see the hurdles. They know the history, they hear stories of the rough ground, are shown the statistics that prove the black man faces more challenges. But their lane has some bumps too. They didn’t personally create any obstacles for anyone. They weren’t around for the days of high hurdles. They decreed it was to be a fair race, so it must be true. A very small percentage of black men have even caught up – doesn’t that prove it? Never mind they never stopped to let all the black men catch up. Never mind the contest was unfair for so long. It’s fair now – what else can we do? We’ve got a race to run. The white man wants to win.

The hurdles aren’t gone. They never will be. The evidence they exist is all around us, but not everyone experiences them. When you’re in the lead it’s hard to see what’s happening behind you. But it’s impossible to deny that the white man had a head start. No way to argue that generation after generation began out in front and did very little to help the black man catch up. How long does the race have to be before we can ignore the start? How much harder does the black man have to run to pull even? How can anyone claim themselves a deserving winner in such an unfair competition?

Everyone runs a different race and some will always have more obstacles than others. There will always be some unfairness in the race. We could argue about who has the hardest course, which hurdles are higher and how many still exist. Or we could spend our time clearing the path. We could work together to remove as many obstacles as possible and let everyone run on the same ground. We could help everyone get to the same starting line. Then we can all race as hard as we want and feel good about our accomplishments. Or maybe we could get on the same team and find a way for everyone to win. Either way, this race needs a start-over.

[I wrote my post before reading this article, but I knew it was out there. It lays out the case in a more concrete manner: The Case for Reparations in The Atlantic]