“There is a decisive difference between being accepted genuinely, as an equal, and being tolerated for some reason . . . I am convinced that on the problem of race most Americans hide the truth or, more accurately, hide from it.”
“Please select one of the three quotes by Dr. Ralph J. Bunche below and write an essay on how this quote relates to your personal experience and view of the future.”
It is extremely unfortunate that nearly fifty years after the Civil Rights Movement, race is still a sensitive and rarely spoken upon topic. The progress from then and now is evident and significant, yet racism and racial prejudice is still affluent even if it is rarely spoken upon. Many people like to believe that prejudice has been completely eradicated, but the truth is, it has just been swept under the rug. People should be much more open about race and who they are in order to make it a more socially acceptable topic for discussion.
In my case, I cannot hide who I am or the color of my skin. There is nothing that is going to change that and there is nothing I would want to do to change that. I accept who I am, even if that means being different than the majority of my peers. My race does play a part in who I am, but it does not define me. Every element of my being defines me; there is no single factor that makes me, who I am. Sadly, people these days place to much emphasis on the color of one’s skin, not the makings of their character. It has become acceptable for people to make split-second judgments of others based entirely on the way they look and the color of their skin. Whether these judgments are made subconsciously or not, they only way to eliminate them is through discussion.
The problems that today’s society faces concerning race is not the same as the outright segregation and racism displayed in the civil rights era, yet they are as serious. What we are confronted with today are racial prejudices that have seeped into our daily lives without us knowing. We almost daily make rash judgments of others based upon their race and the way they look without knowing their true motives. The only way to eliminate a problem like this is to discuss it so that everyone is aware of the danger that hidden racism poses. Learning about your own history and discussing it with someone that you know is the first step to a globe without prejudice.