All the marches and individual gains don't mean struggle is over

By WILLIAM BLACKBURN

When blacks marched on Washington in 1965, they were united in their desire to overcome rampant injustices. When a million black men gathered in Washington in 1995, they were united in their desire to overcome rampant injustices. When more than 20,000 blacks marched in Jena recently, they were united in their desire to overcome rampant injustices. In between, there have been other marches and campaigns. But despite all the marching and singing, little progress has been made. Race relations are worse than people want you to believe.

The walls of racism are as thick as they have ever been, and the achievements of some blacks have put but a dent into its foundation. A black secretary of state, a black Supreme Court justice, a black presidential candidate and a black Super Bowl coach do not mask the failings of our nation and cities to intelligently address the issue of race.

It's short-sighted to think you can travel to a town and change its racist structure in a day. It gives those marching a false hope, because the plan is front-loaded with emotion and lacks long-term solutions. It makes march organizers like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton look and feel good, but the feeling dissipates once the cameras are gone and everyone's gone home.

Almost 12 years ago, I stood among a million black men in the nation's capital and realized that I may never see another day like that in my lifetime. It was historical and spiritual, and you could just feel the love and sense of power in the air. There was a united feeling of strength and the sense that the more than 400 years of oppression that blacks, especially black men, had endured was about to come to an end. It felt as if a new day was dawning in which freedom, justice and equality were in reach.

Then we all went home, and that feeling of euphoria started to fade as more and more black men lost their lives in their own neighborhoods, victims of black-on-black crime. In fact, the number of deaths is so high that if we were in a Third World nation, the epidemic would be described as genocide. Instead it's looked upon as isolated, unconnected incidents that involve a bunch of out-of-control, gun-toting youngsters who listen to too much rap music. That's a misconception, but it's one that can only be changed by those affected the most: the black community. But that doesn't mean others are free of culpability.

We're not just Tiger

We are told race relations are improving. There is no more slavery. We used to have separate water fountains, restaurants, schools and neighborhoods, and now we don't. Look at what Tiger Woods and Venus and Serena Williams have accomplished. And if they can do it, we all can. The gains of some have given the impression that there is progress by the masses, but that is far from the truth.Have blacks made gains in our society? Absolutely, but major inequities still exist, including health care, housing, employment, education and family incomes. Not to mention that blacks have a higher percentage of young men in jail, higher dropout rates among high schoolers and a lower life expectancy.

It's easier to blame the victims for their plight than to address the reasons why such things happen more in one place than another. It's much easier for the mayor of our city to criticize black youth about their clothing and behavior than it is to seek a resolution to the issues affecting them and their communities. It's easy because history books present an artificial optimism about race relations that gives many the notion that racism is dead.

This rosy outlook keeps us from properly analyzing how Don Imus could speak as he did or how several white men and women could brutally rape and beat a black woman in West Virginia or how college students could make videos mocking black folks and then display it for others to see on the Internet as though the offended would view it and laugh with them.

Lingering consequences

We can never truly comprehend the devastating effects of Hurricane Katrina without looking at race. We cannot accurately gauge the performance and test scores of our students without looking at the race factor.

Thus, we must address the enduring legacy of racism and understand its lingering consequences on the social, economic and cultural aspects of our society. Then there won't be a need to march down to Jena, La., or anywhere else.

William Blackburn

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