I think it is time we asked ourselves that question. Why? President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863. The nation was still fighting a Civil War. The Congress ratified the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery in the United States in December of 1865. On December 6, 2023, it will be 158 years. So, Why are we still arguing about race? If you think about it, that was a pretty gutsy move for a new nation.
The deep-seated feeling of Americans toward slavery, actually started before 1863, around 1775, when Quakers in Pennsylvania set up the first abolitionist society. Five years later, Massachusetts became the first state to abolish slavery in its constitution. Seven years after that (1787) the U.S. Congress passed the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, outlawing slavery in the Northwest Territories. But this post is not about giving you a history lesson about slavery in the United States. If you want a complete history of slavery in the entire world, which began long before the existence of The United States, here is a website: History of Slavery.
This post is about trying to unify all Americans. We always hear about how divided our nation is, and who is to blame depending on who you listen too. But what are we doing to correct the problem?
I began writing this post back in January 2023, and had to put it aside for a while. Recently, someone sent me a news article and video of an interview with Dr. Ben Carson Dr Ben Carson about the recent prosecution of former President Trump by a Black American District Attorney. That is what prompted me to revisit this post and complete it. Now this is not a post about the Former President, or the District Attorney, or any political party. To Dr. Carsons point, when he was a young kid, you would never have seen a Black District Attorney, especially prosecuting a Former President.
The following are quotes from Dr Carsons interview: “You would not have seen black CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. You wouldn’t see Black university presidents. You certainly wouldn’t have seen a Black President of the United States, heads of foundations, the list goes on and on. These are things that have happened in my lifetime. It tells you that tremendous racial progress has been made.”
“The race issue is really perplexing when you consider how incredibly much progress has been made.”
” We should be working and building on the progress that has been made and not try to boil everything thing down to some kind of racial problem.”
So why are we still arguing about race? No matter how much progress is made, or what scheme they come up with, the issue never goes away. Why? Because there are people out there who don’t want it to go away. They need it. It supports their very existence. And, meanwhile, who suffers, the common person. No matter how many interracial friendships, relationships, co-workers we have it doesn’t matter because people always buy into what the dividers pump into our televisions, computer monitors, cell phones… I think the dividers are afraid. Afraid that if Black and White Americans unite it will be more difficult to control us.