Opinion: Does racism still exist?

We’re always hearing that we’ve come a long way in ending racism, but there’s still a long way to go. Really? Will someone please tell me where racism exists today? Obviously, our country has a long history of slavery, which ended about 150 years ago. In addition, various forms of discrimination continued for about a century after the Emancipation Proclamation.

However, during the last half-century, blacks have made monumental gains in business, education, politics, sports, movies, and every other category you can name. Our country has had a black president elected for 2 terms, defeating white candidates by wide margins. Keep in mind that blacks only represent about 12% of the population.

Moreover, we now have a black female Vice-President, black Senators and Congressmen, black governors and mayors, and a myriad of blacks in various political offices throughout the country. Furthermore, there are several black billionaires in the U.S., including Oprah Winfrey, Michael Jordan, Tyler Perry, Robert Smith, Kanye West, Jay-Z, etc.

Then there are scores of blacks who are college deans and presidents. Some of the most famous and successful actors in Hollywood movies are black, including Denzel Washington (my favorite actor), Will Smith, Jamie Foxx, Forest Whitaker, Wesley Snipes, and on and on. In sports, there are so many famous athletes that it would take reams of paper to list them all.

Nevertheless, every time I hear from some politician, usually a Democrat, I’m told that much more needs to be done to stamp out the “scourge” of racism in our country. By the way, as that canard is being used, several black extremists are calling for the end to the white race. Imagine what would happen to a white person who called for the extermination of all blacks.

In fact, it’s hard to find a white person to disagree with blacks on issues because they fear being called racists. Yes, we can refer to those anti-white blacks as racists, but, in this politically-correct climate, such accusations would never get much traction from the media. How many Democrats have you heard chastising black television commentators for trashing the white race? When MSNBC racist Joy Reed says whites should stop having kids; is she admonished for her racist remarks? When Black Thugs Matter calls for the murder of whites, are they called black supremacists or racists?

The fact is that one would be hard-pressed to find any area of American life in which blacks are being denied anything because of their skin color. Such a fact is not lost on many blacks who, when passed over for a job, promotion, salary increase, or special award, immediately toss the race card into the arena. It doesn’t matter that they know they’re not qualified or deserving of a particular benefit.

Apparently, they have decided that making false allegations of racism is the most important qualification. Next to being called a pedophile, being called a racist is the most abominable and reputation-destroying accusation to be leveled at anyone. It seems to me such accusations border on slander. Even so, do you know of any people being sued for such irresponsible rhetoric? Possibly, that’s because the trial would only bring more unwanted attention to the person defending against the charge.

Therefore, I’d like to challenge anyone to illustrate where racism is taking place in our country today. If it can be shown that a person’s color is keeping them from achieving success, I’ll eat my words and endeavor to investigate and expose the racists, which is something I’ve done all my life. On the other hand, if no one can credibly point to acts of racism, isn’t it time we stopped talking about it?

Another one of my favorite actors, Morgan Freeman, when he was being interviewed by Mike Wallace several years ago, remarked that the best way to get rid of racism is to “stop talking about it.” When Freeman was interviewed on the Don Lemon show and asked if race plays a part in wealth distribution, his succinct answer, to the obvious astonishment of his host was “no!” He added, “You and I. We’re proof. Why would race have anything to do with it?” Exactly! And anyone with a scintilla of honesty and integrity in their DNA would agree.