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Smith: The cure for racism has not been discovered yet

Prentiss Smith

Racism is an ugly thing that unfortunately still exists in our society. As a proud son of the South, I have seen it first hand, and I am still at a loss to understand what makes one group of people dislike or hate another group of people simply because of the color of one’s skin, or the texture of one’s hair, or just because that is what they have been taught.

As a young man growing up in the South I experienced the horror of Jim Crow. I felt the stigma of being thought of as not good enough when I knew all the time that I was good enough. Today, there are many black people who still deal with the psychological remnants of institutional racism and discrimination. Living in Louisiana during the 50s and 60s was a hard time for people of color. And although it was nothing like the humiliation and degradation their parents and grandparents felt, it was still a sad commentary for a country founded on the idea all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights — life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That was a fairy tale for blacks. It was just not true.

Those words were beautifully written and they sound good, but the problem with those words was they did not include people of color. Blacks were considered three-fifths of a human being, which fed into the de-humanization and marginalization of a whole race of people. The only thing black people had was their belief in a God who would hear their cries and set them free one day. It was the same God their white brothers and sisters believed gave them the right to enslave them. Today, blacks are the most religious people in this country because they believe God finally showed up and changed their condition. That belief was all they had then and it is all they have today.

Yes, the country has changed a lot over the past 50 years. Blacks in America have come a long way, but in reality they have not come very far at all. All of the metrics that measure success still find blacks at the bottom of the totem pole with respect to education, employment, wealth, health, and overall standing. Overt racism is a thing of the past, but institutional racism still exists in every facet of our lives.

When I was growing up in the 50s and 60s, I never had any white friends until the schools in my hometown of Ruston were integrated. That was when things began to change for me and my future friends. By the time I was a freshman at Louisiana Tech, I had as many white friends as I did black friends, which was cool. I still have those relationships 50 years later, and I cherish those friendships today.

Ultimately, I came to the conclusion the real problem between the races was blacks and whites had never dealt with each other as equals. They had not interacted with each other and they had not had the chance to share their hopes and dreams with each other openly and honestly. It became apparent to me I didn't know these people and they didn't know me, but once we began to talk to each other and not at each other or about each other, we began to see a change in the attitudes we had been taught and grew up with. We began to empathize and sympathize with each other and for each other. We began to see each other as human beings trying to make it through the vagrancies of life day by day. It is an example of what dialogue and engagement can do to inform and educate us all.

For the most part, blacks and whites are individually more accepting and tolerant of each other, but racism is in our DNA. It is a cancer that can't be easily put into remission. There may be a cure for this disease, but it has not been discovered yet. The test trials are still going on. As participants in this trial we must continue to strive together to understand each other and respect each other. It is that pursuit of happiness the forefathers talked about that motivates us all. It is the quest for acceptance we all seek, along with the desire to be loved that is the main impetus for reconciliation and healing that has to take place in a world full of strife and turmoil. Sooner or later we are going to have learn to live with each other as brothers and sisters.

Make no mistake about it, racism is alive and well, and unfortunately a cure eludes us. The key for us is to take the shades off of our eyes and deal with the problem head on with comity and civility. We must find a cure for the disease of racism for the sake of our children and grandchildren. And that’s my take.

Prentiss Smith is a Shreveport resident. Email him at