I can remember as a grade schooler in the late 1950's and early 1960's the demonstrations in the south. Particularly the de-segregation of the Little Rock, Arkansas High School, less than 150 miles south of where I grew up. The whole thing didn't make that much sense to me at the time, since in Missouri I was already going to school with black kids. Over the years, my perceptions about the civil rights events that occurred has changed quite a bit. Not only do blacks like Martin Luther King deserve praise for the courage to speak out and take the actions that they did, at the cost of life and limb, but white America also deserves a great deal of credit.
Most of us who are living today, if we were transported back in time to the south and other places where separation of the races existed would think we were in a foreign country. There still exist attitudes today in both the white and black community that are not constructive and positive, but if you consider how far race relations have come in this country in 50 years it is amazing. More needs to be done, but changing peoples hearts can't be legislated. There are cultural issues that may never be fully bridged. But if what's happened in my lifetime is any indication, I wouldn't bet against it.
Social justice is a worthwhile pursuit that benefits society in every sense in the long run.
"Fat, drunk and stupid is no way to go through life son." Dean Vernon Wormer, Faber College
