A Growing % Of Americans Worry About Race Relations

There is both good and bad in this survey. The good is that the number of people who worry about race relations in the United States is growing. The bad is that the numbers of those who worry about race relations is still far too low.

Racial inequality still exists in this country. Fortunately, it is getting more news coverage these days. But too many Americans remain ignorant of the problem, believing this was a problem solved back in the 1960's when the civil rights laws were passed. Those laws were a good thing, and they solved the most public problems -- but they did not solve all our racial problems.

I'm not talking about the ignorant racists that have crawled back out from under their rocks since President Obama was elected, although they are a problem that needs to be dealt with. More important though is the institutional racism that exists in our society (policing agencies, justice system, schools, etc.). Our institutions have a racist element built into them, which allows people to act in racist ways while sticking to the letter of the law. This must be changed.

We are Americans, and out Constitution guarantees equality to all citizens. That means this continuing institutional racism is not only morally wrong -- it is unconstitutional. If we truly believe in the Constitution and the American Dream, then it is time we act to erase this blot of racism on our country.

The chart above was made from a recent Gallup Poll -- done between March 2nd and 6th of a random national sample of 1,019 adults, with a 4 point margin of error.