Norman Van Walterop: Time to do something about racism
Trayvon Martin; Ferguson, Mo.; Charleston, S.C. These names and places share something. All are related to issues of race.
Oh, there are exceptions (few and far between), such as the President and a recently elected black presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church plus a scattering of black CEOs in the corporate world. We can do better. The most segregated time in America is Sunday morning. How often have you heard: “But they would rather be with their own kind.” Or in the world of real estate: “You shouldn’t sell the property to a black family or else all of the accompanying property values will go down.”
It has been the real estate industry that has contributed to segregation. Interestingly, if affirmative action was enforced in the NBA and the NFL, the quality of play would drop dramatically. A recent survey indicated that over half of the children under age 5 are non-white. Worldwide two-thirds of the population is non-white. We do not want a divided USA.
As one reads in Holy Scripture: “Love thy neighbor.”
Norman Van Walterop, Modesto
This story was originally published August 3, 2015 at 6:20 PM with the headline "Norman Van Walterop: Time to do something about racism."