Candid Discussion About Race

Listening to Champaign Council Member Gina Jackson expound on the state of race relations with respect to proposed changes in Section 8 housing rules reminded me yet again of the racial divisions in our community and our country.

Racial issues seem to creep into so many discussions. Let's go back just a little. Rodney King riots in 1992. Clarence Thomas confirmation hearings. OJ Simpson trial. Unit 4 Schools (facilities, bussing, you name it). Affordable housing. Affirmative Action. Welfare.

The truth is, there remains a huge disconnect between the races in this country. The majority white population believes to a large extent that racism has been eradicated in modern society. After all, we don't have Jim Crow laws or separate schools, right? Good things happpen to good people who work hard; bad things happen to lazy people who choose welfare over work.

If you are black, however, you have likely experienced a different America than your paler counterparts. You have noticed, for example, that people with your skin color do not become President, and that poor and very poor neighborhoods are disproportionately populated by your race. You see lots of police cars in your neighborhood, not nearly so many other places. Your perceptions start to affect how you view everything. When you get stopped by the police for little or no reason, you wonder whether you are being treated differently because of your race.

One's thoughts about goverment and politics become, well, colored, by one's race. If you are the minority, government is your best friend, because the balance of society is biased against you, and you have suffered hundreds of years of discrimination. If you are the majority, you believe that ours is a meritocracy, and that, like your ancestors from Europe, hard work and perserverance will pay dividends for you and your children.

We love to hold up the ideal of a colorblind society as a legitimate goal. Let's get past that, right now. Human beings will always use differences to differentiate their environment, and that includes race. People naturally take comfort in being with people who are "like them," regardless of whether the similarity is of race, income, or geography.

Don't expect any of this to change anytime soon, it's been going on forever.

So, what is the role of race in discussions of policy? I have some guidelines to propose:

1. Race does not "entitle" anyone to anything. Whether your ancestors were landed gentry or slaves, get over it. That was then, this is now. Everybody faces challenges. Suck it up.

2. Race is a legitimate point of difference. Let's not pretend that racial divisions don't exist, because they do. Pretending that they don't is disingenuos.

3. Don't automatically assume that race is the motivation behind an event. Lots of things happen for lots of -- legitimate -- reasons. Claiming racism is just too easy, and often unfair.

4. Empathize with the opposite point of view. Realize if you are a white cop stopping a car in a black neighborhood, they might think they are being singled out. Realize that if you are a black kid walking down the street in a gang of 15, a reasonable person might wonder if you are up to something nefarious.

5. Learn from the other side, embrace diversity. If you are white, realize that there is a rich black culture that majority socieity has copied for years. If you are black, realize that there is something to be said for the white puritan ethic of hard work and sacrifice as a means of improving your future.

Thoughts?