Ethnically Speaking by Larry Meeks

Dear Larry: Just because Barack Obama has been elected president, it does not mean blacks should think that racism is gone and that they don't need to continue to fight against racism from white people. Whites still hold the black man down. I think black people such as you, who say institutional racism is gone, are very damaging to our struggle. It is obvious that you do not know what is really happening in the world and that you are out of touch with the black race.

First of all, white Americans, not blacks, elected Obama. We do not represent one electoral vote. Even though we did not elect him, we are not any less than any other race.

Because we will have a black man in the White House, it does not undermine or remove all the history and killing of blacks at the hands of white Americans. I cannot forget the hate group called the Ku Klux Klan. This is one of the oldest terrorist groups in America. The KKK is responsible for the death of my father. They hanged him from a tree.

This presidential election also does not remove the rapes and other heinous crimes that have gone unpunished in the past.

Do you remember the bombing of black families, the dragging of a black man, or the killing of seven students in Amherst by white skinheads who got off? Do you remember all of that?

Did you forget the dogs that were turned loose on Dr. Martin Luther King as he walked across the bridge? Do you remember these things?

Did you know that over the years, only two black men have been elected to the position of governor in the U.S.?

So don't write things that say blacks are making excuses for racism.

Racism is still here and very much in play.

What about you? You were not given your job at the paper because of your ability to write. I am sure you got your job largely because of your race.

I am a black chef. How many black chefs do you know? There are not many blacks in my field. I have worked in my trade for more than 35 years and have trained many of the white chefs. I know racism is alive and well because they have gotten many jobs that should have gone to me.

Again, I do not appreciate your words. They are very damaging. — Gerald

Dear Gerald: You are correct in recalling the terrible things that have happened in the past, and I am sorry for the loss of your father at the hands of the KKK. You are right; the KKK was a lawless group of cowards that preyed upon minorities and non-Protestant people. I, like many blacks, remember losing family members from lynchings and other forms of murder. My mixed race comes from the forcible rapes of my enslaved ancestors. Now that we have a common background, I am telling you it is time to let go of your past pain and look to the future.

We cannot change the past, but we can shape our future. The hate you continue to dwell in is not today's America. The KKK and other white hate groups are but a tiny sliver of the population and have practically no impact upon your ability to achieve.

You are wrong to infect the coming generations with your paranoia and hate. Your emotions of hatred will not help our young people to succeed. They need to believe that with hard work and dedication to task, they can and will succeed. I hate to be redundant, but I believe that if they work hard enough and follow the right path, they even can be elected president.

I stand by my words.

To find out more about Larry G. Meeks and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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