Racism in America

I do not agree that race is the most consequential issue our nation faces today. I think that in a time where we have elected a black president, it is apparent that racial equality is at an all time high. While things may still not be equal and racial tensions may still exist, I don't think that race is as huge an issue as Mr. Smiley makes it out to be. I think his points were fairly one-sided, and that he only portrayed race as an issue strictly as one of white hostility to blacks. He also did not provide any substantial proof for his claims that racism is a serious everyday problem, nor did he propose any solutions as to how to fix the problem. I do agree that prejudice is often a difficult subject to confront, but I feel this is a more two-sided subject than Mr. Smiley presents. I feel that every racial group holds prejudice towards all other groups, rather than just whites towards blacks or vice versa. I think that a way to open up discussion about this topic would be for all groups to not degrade each other, but to take pride in their respective cultures and take the time to appreciate and learn about another culture and race's values. A conference aimed towards peace and friendship rather than confrontation and accusation would do more to ease racial tensions in my opinion. I also think that as time goes on, younger generations are learning to become desensitized to race and move away from the prejudice of older generation. Time doesn't heal all, but I think that time paired with a conscious effort to gravitate towards love and acceptance rather than hate and isolation is going to fix this problem.