Readers share their views on race

I'm, 35, black, unemployed, living at home with my parents because the economy is so bad. I'm afraid to leave because the job market is uncertain and after my last two jobs I'm becoming bitter and becoming that angry black man that people always talk about. I love people of all races and always tried to understand people of other races but the love from them is not the same. Truthfully, I'm at my wits' end because if I'm educated and an honest person who works hard can't find employment due to no lack of skills but my race, then why not sell drugs or turn to a convenient way of earning a living? My credit cards are maxed out and I need dental surgery which I can't afford. Tell me what I can do when people don't look at the work that you do but the color of your skin?

—Fredrick Kennedy, Jackson, Miss.

I live in Los Angeles so there is little to say about racial makeup. I believe, however, that the blacks in our society are still burdened with an identity crisis that to this day has not been resolved. Example: As a probation officer for Los Angeles County in 1969, we were required to fill in the required blanks as to ethnic origin. In 1969, the ethnic origin was "Negro." In the 1970s it was "Black." Today it is "African-American." Among whites, who cares if you're Irish, German, French, etc.? It doesn't matter. Among African-Americans, it is still a problem of clarification. Consider Barack Obama. Is he half black? Half white? Not white enough, not black enough? Obviously our nation is not color blind and racism is alive and well.

—John Mayer, Los Angeles, Calif.

I live in St. Louis. There is a big divide between the races here. I feel this is the heartbeat of America in the Midwest. Blacks will never get the same breaks no matter what type of job they have because it is the American way to hate and forget. We will never be equal. We will never be accepted. It shows its head here daily. As it does across America.

—W.R. Moore, St. Louis, Mo.

I have had a mixed reaction, no pun intended, since moving to the U.S. in September 2007. I come from the Caribbean island of Trinidad and Tobago where race doesn't really matter. We're a multiracial and cultural country. We appreciate and celebrate each others' cultures and religions. I am of East Indian heritage but identify solely as being Trinidadian. I moved to this country because I married an American. My husband is as white as you can get. He's 6'2" and has green eyes. Since I've been here in the U.S. I've been subjected to racist comments that I have never heard before in my own country. I never had a problem with anyone before and still don't but I am very aware that people have a problem with me because of what they perceive me to be. I may be of East Indian decent but I am also mixed which means I can pass for Hispanic. People come up to me and start speaking Spanish to me all the time because of it ... no big deal. What I do not appreciate is why is it considered freedom of speech for a white woman to call me "Indian trash" and for me to be insulted to my face and be told that I'm a mail order bride who's only here for her green card. Why am I called ugly because of my race? Why can a white woman look at me and insult my physical features and say that she is better than me because she's white? Trust me I have a better job than she does ... she works as a waitress in a bar. I work for a non-profit organization in Washington, D.C. I have a degree and am almost finished with my MBA and all she has is a high school diploma. In a court, I was told by a judge that it's her right to call me nappy haired (now mind you, if you see me you would understand how ludicrous that is) because she's entitled to free speech. I thought that it was a crime to spew racial hatred. My thought was, well, at least if you're going to insult me, be intelligent enough to use the correct racial epitaph. That's the least that I could ask for, right? I think that a person of color as president could either unite this country or drive people even further apart. It all depends on the policies of the person. Corrective action has to be measured and gradual but one thing I would love to happen is that racial intolerance and spewing racial hatred under the guise of freedom of speech be stopped. I am tired of being condescended to because I'm not white. No one is better than me because of their color and I am not better than anyone because of my color either. I am me, a person devoid of color.

—Tricia Saladeen Steel, Bowie, Md.

The black people in this country are by far more a racist problem than any other ethnic group. Their preachers talk about hating the white people and they preach it to their congregations on Sundays. This is according to Rev. Wright and his so-called follower Obama. These are not my words but the words of Obama himself. If this is what's being taught in this country, then we have a serious problem. Attitudes must be changed. Stop complaining and taking, taking, taking and start giving back a little. Enough is enough. When you see a perfectly healthy black man 25 years old on the news asking where is his money (talking about his government check that the working people of this country are having to pay for) that is a few days late, while he is living in the Marriot Hotel free (for over a year), then would you not say "Houston, we have a problem?"

—Vince Burns, Houston, Texas

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