Roy Schimelpfenig’s latest letter “We are not a racist nation” (Our Readers’ Views, Jan. 4) continues to ignore reality. While he seems to at least acknowledge that slavery existed, noting that children should be taught about “slavery and the Democratic Party’s role in it,” Schimelpfenig seems to believe that racism either never existed or, at some point, disappeared after the end of slavery.
But has he never heard of Jim Crow laws? Of redlining? Of deed restrictions based on race? Or does he believe that once racist laws and practices were formally eliminated, the racially tilted playing field was magically leveled once and for all?
Has Schimelpfenig not heard of Nixon’s “Southern strategy”? Or current Republican voter-suppression efforts? Or white supremacist rallies that still occur? Does he truly believe that racial minorities today face no additional hurdles to success due to racist views still held by many in this country? If so, he needs to take off his rose-colored glasses. Only by first acknowledging the truth can the nation move forward toward creating equal opportunities for all, regardless of race.
