At about 6:13 this morning.

Ed–
You win the thread.

You bring up a salient point, Craig. The fact is that the problem has become much more worse among generations of blacks far removed from slavery than among generations closer to the era of slavery.

Most black children were raised in two-parent homes, even under slavery, and for generations thereafter. Freed blacks married, and marriage rates among blacks were slightly higher than among whites in the early 20th century. Blacks also had slightly higher rates of labor force participation than whites in every census from 1890 to 1950. The same was true in Britain, where terms like “redneck” and “cracker” originated. What lower-class white communities in Britain and black ghettoes in the US have in common is a pattern of social pathology that became pronounced in the latter half of the 20th century, when similar ideas and policies became dominant in both countries.I wonder what those policies were?

As it pertains to further disparities today, W.E.B. Dubois (W.E.B. Dubois, The Philadelphia Negro: A Social Study (New York: Schocken Books, 1967) 19th century study concluded that if all white people lost their racial prejudices overnight, it would not make much difference to most black workers. Though “some few would be promoted, some few would get new places” nevertheless “the mass would remain as they are,” until the younger generation began to “try harder,” until the “idle and discouraged” were stimulated and the whole “black race lost the omnipresent excuse for failure: prejudice.”

I think one could draw some logical parallels between DuBois’ work with blacks and the plight of many Native Americans today…but I’m not properly schooled to do it.

White’s don’t really have the problem – we’re not former slaves (who didn’t rebel), so we don’t have to deal with that baggage, and we are the dominant force in this society.

Yes, I do like to get an exchange going, and sometimes come here and poke at you a little bit. I wasn’t aware that was trolling, since I use my real name – I thought trolling was the anonymous shit that goes around.

Slavery takes generations to overcome – the attitudes it bred, the families that were wantonly destroyed, the inferiority complex it breeds – none of that disappears overnight.

So, now that we’re 5-6 generations removed, do we still have to wring our hands over it? When does the statute of limitations expire?

Then along comes you to accuse them of racism. Whadda guy.

Not saying that. I’m saying if it’s white, it’s racism, and if it’s black it’s not. Why is that? I dunno, maybe I took that whole “content of their character, not the color of their skin” thing to heart. And if they’re trying to “establisht their identity,” what’s wrong with white people doing the same thing?

I’m not a troll, and you know it.

Mark, you have a long history of throwing things out just to poke other people in the eye and get a reaction. That’s a troll, in the classic sense. For what it’s worth, I’m a bit of a troll myself sometimes.