Am I a racist ?

[Don Corleone]

Actually, if I may (and I never thought I'd be saying this) Khafir has a good point. There's a 3rd (and a 4th, 5th and 6th option here) if we calm down and stop getting our backs up.

As a descendant of Irish immigrants who literally signed their lives away to escape the British (they sent 4 sons to the Union, 2 to the Confederacy... only one survived, which is why the clan is Yankee) on the one side, and Italian immigrants who took such beatings, they legally changed their name from "Calabrisi" to "Harris" on the other, I don't feel the least bit guilty about America's treatment of the Native Americans or African-Americans.

BUT. I do believe (and this is a capitalist speaking) it is incumbent on us a society to look around and see if any past ills of this society have caused a segment to fall behind the pack. When clear evidence can be presented that it has, we owe it to them, and as they are us, we owe it to ourselves to see to it that all are carried along together.

If a black, red, white, brown or yellow man is too lazy to go get a decent job, shame on them. If black men, red men, white men, brown men or yellow men have been put in a position where they cannot, shame on us.