The only people who can bring racial
reconciliation tomorrow are the ones who are bringing racial injustice today.
Yes, that's white people. The first step is education.
Nearly every white
person you know will swear on all their Bibles that they are NOT racist. That
might or might not be true, but it is how they view themselves. But the REAL
problem is the wide network of disadvantages that the last century of white
efforts have constructed and tied together so that the people doing the work of
disadvantage don't feel guilty.
The bankers, real estate agents, and zoning
committees have created segregated housing patterns. The school boards and city
councils have created segregated schools. Employers value employees who
"fit the corporate culture". Prosecutors, judges, and juries pass
judgments based on the financial resources of the defending attorneys.
Governments fund most of the local infrastructure from the local tax base
(which has been financially segregated by the "white flight"
relocation of the well-off).
Tied into all of this is the uneven impact of
pollution (and now, the coronavirus). Yes, that's a long way of describing
where we are. Still, you cannot deliver the needed education of your white
family and friends unless you understand the network of disadvantage that
non-whites face.
That is what "systemic racism" really is: a network
of pitfalls and stumbling blocks.
