Are you a racist?

In all likelihood, you are to some extent or another. Even I am guilty at times of falling prey to this. The ways I'm thinking of are far more subtle than you may think though. I'm not talking about thinking you're superior to other races or thinking other races to be more violent and dangerous. Instead I mean that you subconsciously are supporting laws and ideas that hurt minorities while leaving yourself and your fellows unharmed.

While I'm tempted to launch into a discussion about the new healthcare reform, I would like to touch on ideas not so close in mind. For example, the national election day is not a national holiday. The government and many businesses are open full time. While many middle and upper class Americans can easily get off of work long enough to vote. However, minorities find themselves far less able to make time in their days to vote; in poverty, they work more for less, making taking time off from work less possible. Yet, we do nothing about it. We close for irrelevant holidays, but the most important holiday (Elections) has yet to be given the same respect. The one holiday that shapes our government and embodies the very soul of it is left a normal day, a day that deserves no respect. Minorities continue to be unrepresented in elections and the current Election day makes up a part of the reasons for that underrepresentation.

Another dangerous form of our subconscious racism is the failure of our inner city schools. These schools continue to be populated mostly by lower class, minority families and they continue to perform far below their suburban counterparts. However, when inner city students are placed into high performing schools, they score stronger than their white counterparts. The mechanisms in place prevent our inner city students from performing at the level they are capable of. The poor teaching, dangerous environment, and lack of proper materials prevent inner city students from getting the same access to resources that their suburban and rural counterparts receive. As a result, they are less able to get into college and less prepared for skill base careers. We must improve our inner city schools and give all students the same opportunities for success, we cannot let these students fail because of our inability to see the inequity. It is our failure.

The hatred this country feels for welfare is awe inspiring. Yet Welfare programs make up less than 1% of our federal budget. Meanwhile, our military budget exceeds 600 billion dollars a year. Our problem is priorities. We focus on the need to defend ourselves from distant and sometimes made up enemies, and fail to see the conditions of so many of our fellow Americans. These people are not leeches sucking away your blood. Many are in desperate need of assistance just to survive, even when holding jobs. For a country so enthusiastic about Christianity, you seem to have forgotten that your Lord and Savior dedicated himself to the poor and meager. You have failed in your faith if you are so selfish, that you cannot help your fellow human when they need you.

I hope that every single person can recognize the inequities in society and the blinders that prevent them from seeing such noble solutions as basic healthcare, aid to impoverished families. We must be willing to examine our own self and see the successes and faults we have. We have done such amazing things, but there are many more illnesses that we have failed to remedy. Do not sit idly by.