Age of Obama: Beginning of the End of Racism

Dear Qazi Sahib:)

Yes, it is becoming a talked-about topic these days and President Carter was bold enough to talk about it. Good for him.

Your comment is very thought-provoking: race as a 'hot issue' usually masks underlying economic or other inequalities. Agreed. Yesterday, I read a piece that says that the word 'racism' is being diluted - its impact is being eroded. And the most striking comment the author made was 'I think we have come full-circle when whites are accusing Obama of bein racist'!

So, in a strange way, we are looking at the dilution of the word 'racist' and as you say, charges of racism are becoming emotive placeholders for other underlying issues.

Dear Choudhry Sahib:

Very nice article.

It is true that racial barriers have come down and yet it is a reality that race-element is still there. Just the other President Carter spoke about it too. I’m not sure if you heard him.

Racism as cruel a reality as it is, I hope you will have noticed that it is always coupled with something else to become a monster of social significance. In the US, the agrarian economy needed slaves to keep southern plantations alive right from the get go. Rights for blacks were acknowledged alongside the changing tide of economy from southern agricultural based economy to industrialization that took hold first in the north.

What I am trying to say, it is my understanding that anything to become a social phenomenon of some significance, for instance, race, there are always more than one complementary phenomenon. In case of Obama, you say race, but there are lots disenfranchised ‘whites’ in the US. It is hard to explain them away by the race-yardstick. Do you think we have to change our descriptive terms?

Kind regards

Tahir

Asadi Saheb, this writer thinks Obama's presidency has begun the end of structural racism in USA. I will like to hear your comment. Please educate.