Race. What does it mean?

Today I was watching the Dr. Keith Ablow show and he featured a white woman who was blatantly honest about she being a racist. She opposed her daughter dating and possibly marrying a black man. Being a black woman, it's not anything new to me. I know that racism is still alive and kicking. Just because it's 2007 doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. One of the worse parts about racism is that it is taught. So a person whose great great grandfather is a racist, he is going to teach it to his son and he'll teach it to his and so forth. It takes one generation to say that they won't teach their children but would still be in the air. It would still be around. This woman who was on the show was very real and honest. She didn't sugarcoat or hide her true feelings. I appreciate honesty, no matter how ugly it is. Currently I live in Indianapolis but before this, I lived in Germany and Jackson, MS. Living in all three places has really formed my opinions about the world and people. People in MS were honest. If a white person didn't like you, especially because you were black, you knew it. They didn't hide it or apologize for it. It was very straightforward and open to everyone. I remember being in my ROTC class in high school and my teacher talking to the black female and male students that if a police officer pulls you over at night, do not stop until you are in a well lit place AND with people around. Slow down but get to a public place because you don't know what that officer would do or say. Now I'm 24 now and at that time, I was 16 and I wasn't driving yet but I did go out with friends. You would think that a teacher would give that advice to all students. I mean to be honest, you should do that anyway. You just never know about policemen these days whether you're black, white, Hispanic, or whatever. But he made a point to focus on us, the black students. To make even more crazy, everyone, black and white, agreed with him. They nodded their heads and some said that they don't even drive at night to avoid that. This was 1999 and he was honest. I was living in Indy and Germany before this so I was shocked about it. Everyone has read stories about Mississippi and saw the movies. Hell, my family messed up and saw "Mississippi Burning" before we got on the plane. Why did we do that? All the white people in the Jackson airport looked that they were in the Klan but I didn't know any better. But living in Mississippi really opened my eyes about black and white people. I really embraced my blackness and the love of myself down there. I wasn't against white people. I just loved my black people. I move to Indianapolis and it was like another culture shock to me. I went from people being brutally honest to people who had indirect racism. Meaning that there were people that I met that smiled in my face and said the famous comment "I have black friends" but the second that they were away, the N-word was thrown around like a Frisbee. Or sometimes it was little comments they didn't think was wrong and in turn made them think they weren't racist. Comments like "you are smart for a black girl" or a customer telling me about helping children for Christmas and she said, "Yes, these gifts are for the colored children." Now that was very recently, within six months. I have found here in Indy that either they don't want to attacked for how they feel or they really don't think anything is wrong with it. That to me is worse because they're smiling in your face but hating everything about you in their heads. That's worse when it comes to getting an apartment or a house or a job because of someone's ugly opinion. So I appreciate this woman's honesty, however, she and everyone else who feels this should have their own little island somewhere and they can start to hate each other. Think about it, really, if there weren't any more black people around. What would white people do? No more hip hop which means billions of dollars out of the white man's pockets. No more sports...Think about that. What would white people do if they couldn't see their favorite basketball, football, baseball, tennis, AND golf player anymore? How would it be? Where would white people get their entertainment? Who would they be able to exploit? Other white people? Just try to really think how would the country be without black people? We are the soul of this country. Black people bring soul to everything: food, music, attitude, way of life, church, everything. So when someone says that all black people should just die off or go back to Africa (that's their favorite one), then they are saying they don't want their souls because they would be losing their souls. Being black is beautiful and I love it everyday. There are three things about that I would never change: Being a writer, a woman, and being black!!!