My father was a racist. Although back then, it was called prejudice. I was not aware of it growing up because he decided to hide his feelings so as not to pass them on to my brothers and me. I brought a black friend home from school when I was 11. Dad, while not saying anything negative, conveyed his emotion to the point were my friend never came back. In a discussion afterward, he related how when he grew up in upstate NY he had a black nanny. To him, blacks were servants and that is how he perceived them. Over the years, he overcame his prejudice and I was proud of him for doing so.

My 86-year-old father-in-law, to this day, has a hatred of blacks. If a black person comes on the TV, he will change the channel. He learned his hatred in the navy in WWII when a black stabbed a friend of his. I don’t fault him for his beliefs. His experiences were different from mine. He didn’t pass them on and they are pretty much inconsequential since he lives in a town of 15,000 with a black population of five.

“If one simply tries to judge based upon statistics or what one reads in the paper, or even one's own personal experiences, one will be handicapped in coming to a more thorough assessment of the reality…”

This probably works both ways. My experiences with blacks have all been positive but quite limited. Even in the NW blacks and whites tend to keep apart whether by choice or by Economics or both.

I’ve never been to the South. I’ve heard that attitudes have not really changed much from the days of segregation. If these attitudes are perpetuated through generations then they become a hindrance to the prosperity of the nation as a whole.

Well, I seem to be stuck on the “It’s A Small World” ride. I didn’t mean anything negative by the “grandma” comparison although I can see how it could be taken that way. Just an observation.

Take care Tech1

Rob (starting to feel like the “Church Lady”)