Drug War Nightmare: How We Created a Massive Racial Caste System in America
http://www.alternet.org/rights/154698/drug_war_nightmare%3A_how_we_created_a_massive_racial_caste_system_in_america/
Ever since Barack Obama lifted his right hand and took his oath of office, pledging to serve the United States as its 44th president, ordinary people and their leaders around the globe have been celebrating our nations triumph over race. Obamas election has been touted as the final nail in the coffin of Jim Crow, the bookend placed on the history of racial caste in America.
Obamas mere presence in the Oval Office is offered as proof that the land of the free has finally made good on its promise of equality. Theres an implicit yet undeniable message embedded in his appearance on the world stage: this is what freedom looks like; this is what democracy can do for you. If you are poor, marginalized, or relegated to an inferior caste, there is hope for you. Trust us. Trust our rules, laws, customs, and wars. You, too, can get to the promised land.
Perhaps greater lies have been told in the past century, but they can be counted on one hand. Racial caste is alive and well in America.
Most people dont like it when I say this. It makes them angry. In the era of colorblindness theres a nearly fanatical desire to cling to the myth that we as a nation have moved beyond race. Here are a few facts that run counter to that triumphant racial narrative: