I don't know how many years Bob. I can only say it isn't just an excuse. When Obama ran for President, I didn't have to go far amongst my family and friends to find those who would never consider voting for an African American, regardless of his politics. Just wasn't going to happen. If you are caucasian, I would guess you know folks who feel the same way without thinking too hard on it. I personally believe that some percentage of the Tea Party demonstrators didn't become Constitutional 'experts' until we had an African American President either. They try to hide behind 'birther' and middle name of Hussein nonsense. I see it as something else.
Using Obama as an example, he was raised by a caucasian mother and grandparents. He did not claw his way out of the projects, in other words, he shares a lot of culture with caucasians.
It is their country too. Shortly before the Revolution, 20% of the population was African American. Mostly slaves or servants for life. The Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights did nothing to change their slave status. The US Constitution and the State's Constitutions - used between the Declaration Of Independence and the ratification of the US Constitution - for the most part legally protected slavery. Some signers of the US Constitution were slave owners, including the man who wrote it.
When African Americans were able to join the middle class in the northern states, as a result of non-discriminatory employment laws, they were shunned by caucasian society. That is the basis for white flight which began in the 1960's leaving broken communities behind.
Following the civil war through the first half of the 20th century, many blacks in the south were robbed of the farms and property which they legally owned. The judges, lawyers, sheriffs and juries were all white people and saw blacks as less than equal. That might still be the case without LBJ's civil rights push of the mid-sixties. Over and over again the life forced on blacks in this country has been very discriminatory.
From the earliest days of the American Colonies until the mid-1960's, African Americans were either slaves or powerless to participate in the American culture as we think of it. Naturally, during this time period, they developed their own culture - wouldn't you or I? They didn't reject white culture, they told very clearly to keep out of it. It would be unreasonable to expect two cultures with a goodly amount of ill feeling between them to heal in one or two generations.
To this day, the black and white cultures of our country have never truly joined. Or the white and hispanic. Hopefully they get a little closer as time goes on. Did you know that this year, 2010, may be the first year that non-white births exceed white births in the US?
Look at two areas of American life - the military and professional sports. There are many, many examples of African Americans who have excelled in those two areas. They also happen to be the two most color blind institutions we have in our country. That should tell us something Bob.
I do agree that LBJ's Great Society housing projects were dismal failures. I will still take his efforts as a good faith attempt to solve a very old and entrenched problem. I don't know where else in the world we may look to find solutions that work. Racial harmony is difficult to achieve given our history.
Dave.
I was washing up my heavy winter jacket and coveralls anyways, so more laundry. They sure got it down in RI. We don't have anything like that here.