“It’s time to quit living and dwelling in the past with hatred and prejudices and move forward into the future.” — William R. Sutton
I read Mike McLellan’s Ethics & Values column, “Racism still in our world” (Tracy Press, April 2), and I agree with him that the world has changed. I was born in 1936 and grew up in Oakland in a white neighborhood, with a black playmate as a friend. I didn’t think anything about it; however, many white adults noticed the racial differences. As a child, I never understood why.
I saw racism in 1957 when I joined the U.S. Air Force and was stationed in Maine. My barracks had four men in a room; two sections were for whites, and two were for blacks. When an airman in my room moved out, a black friend named Joe in our squadron moved in. We had a lot in common, as he had lived in Richmond. Joe and I hung out together at the restaurants, theater and taverns in town. I took a lot of flak and name-calling behind my back for associating with Joe. There was a lot of prejudice, not only in the town but also on the base.
There is plenty of racism to go around, even today, not only against blacks, but also against whites, Japanese, Jews, Vietnamese and Mexicans. Sometimes people make racist remarks to me, not knowing I’m married to a Mexican. I’m white, and I’ve been married to a Mexican woman for the past 34 years, and we have seen our share of prejudice. We still see it when we register at a motel or eat together at a restaurant.
Racism is alive and well all over the world. I feel like the civil rights of blacks have been set back two decades since the Rev. Jeremiah Wright preached his hateful remarks about “goddamn Americans” and said the white man is responsible for the way blacks are treated today. The Rev. Wright is wrong and is a racist, pure and simple.
This country is not the “KKK, USA,” and spouting irresponsible racist comments won’t bring white and black men together. It sure doesn’t help Sen. Barack Obama’s run for president, either.
When is the hate between different Americans going to end? We are supposed to be the United States. There are people in this country who hate America and want to see it destroyed. They hate the government and the American flag and everything that it stands for.
It’s a shame that people can’t learn to live together in harmony in a free society. It’s time to quit living and dwelling in the past with hatred and prejudices and move forward into the future. This is a positive change that all Americans can live with.
• William R. Sutton, 72, has lived in Tracy for 30 years and is retired. He is the author of “The Wind Blew Him West,” about his grandfather who traveled West by covered wagon on the Oregon Trail in 1862.
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I also saw blacks "borrow" Belts , hats, shoes for Uniform inspections, and the lenders had to ask repeatedly for the return of the items, and were treated as if They didnt even have a right to do so.
Dont give me that Crap that Blacks are suffering Racism alone
They have learned to practice it with relish.
Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton are the Patron Saints of Race baiting...We cant move forward because Blacks dont want to.