Racism in America

If you had a meter to measure the "racist" attitudes of the United States of America today, what do you think you would rate it as? If one (1) meant "very little or no racism among the majority of the people" and ten (10) being "a lot of racism among the majority of the people" what would you rate the current "mood" of our nation? A rating of five (5) would me in the middle, neither high nor low.

Are we in America working toward common goals or are there entirely different and opposing agendas at work? Are races of various kinds seeking to understand each other more or are they simply remaining in their respective "corners?" To me racism starts when a culture is primarily dependent and driven on the common appearance (skin color) of a group. The group has an affinity to each other and the members make it a point to engage in similar functions with each other. The more they remain with each other, the more they learn to develop similar language, likes, dislikes, etc. They start to develop a culture, initially based on the skin color and then later on their shared values and experiences. As they interact with each other, they may irrationally believe that the race that "binds" them together is actually superior to the other existing races. The thinking can become one where one may conclude that all that belongs to their race is superior and worthwhile, while the attributes of the other races are inferior, and useless.

Too many people make many assumptions simply on race. One may conclude that if the person is "white" he/she may not want to be with a black person and vice versa. Another may conclude that if a person is black, he/she may "love" hip hop. One may also conclude that if a person is white, he may "hate" hip hop. The list can go on and on. Racism can develop simply from culture that is maintained and driven by a person's identity with a group that has a common skin color or tone.

The reality, however, is no skin color no matter how light or dark intrinsically determines anything about a person's contribution to their society. The culture and what is done with it will determine how much or little a group or groups will contribute negatively or positively to society. A "better America" would result, I believe, if as people, we accept and admit that the race is not so much what defines us but more so the culture that we develop based on the groups that drive our identity.