Kerr: America is not a racist nation — but it's not perfect, either

As recently as 60 years ago, within the lifetime of many of our readers, America could accurately be described as a racist nation.

Laws designed to oppress people of color existed in various parts of the country. Segregation was a way of life in an entire corner of the United States. Black Americans were required to sit in the back of the bus and barred from certain restaurants and restrooms.

Those laws are no longer in place. America today is not a racist country, but like most other nations of the world it is a country where racism still exists. There’s a wide distinction between the two.

Continuing to define America as institutionally racist is a disservice to those civil rights pioneers being honored this weekend during a public march over Memorial Bridge between Kittery, Maine, and Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in tribute to the 1963 March on Washington, D.C., highlighted by Martin Luther King’s epic “I Have A Dream” speech. Today our system provides legal recourse for those facing racial discrimination, or even violence.

But one gets the sense from the opposite end of the political spectrum that racism itself is a thing of the past; that we don’t need to continue the fight because the war’s been won. I’ve got some bad news — racism is not likely to go away any time soon. But meanwhile, we can and should strive to further diminish its influence.

Personally, I believe the election of an African American named Barack Hussein Obama as president of the United States, twice, put to rest the notion of America being a racist country. On both occasions, he actually won a majority of the popular vote — 53% in 2008 and 51% in 2012.

This didn’t stop Obama and his family from being subjected to racist attacks throughout his presidency and beyond, demonstrating that while the institutional structure of America has shed its racist past, the ugly beast still resides within the hearts of some citizens.

I’ve been contemplating all this recently due to another compelling presidential campaign. Republican Tim Scott, the first Black senator from the South since Reconstruction, points to his own story — raised in South Carolina by a single mom who worked 16-hour days to support her children — as evidence that America is not a racist country.

“I’m the candidate the far left fears the most,” he said when announcing his White House bid earlier this year (and I happen to think he’s right.) “I disrupt their narrative. I threaten their control. The truth of my life disrupts their lies.”

Scott has been branded by some as a token, sometimes referred to as “Uncle Tim” for his conservative political beliefs. Pundits like Van Jones of CNN take issue with Scott’s assertions denying the existence of systemic racism in our country.

But Scott doesn’t shy away from the realities of the issue, often mentioning how his grandfather in the past had to step off the sidewalk and not make eye contact when white folks were approaching. He also acknowledges he’s been pulled over almost 20 times for “driving while black.”

Scott’s an inspiring figure, able to verbally joust with the hosts of left-leaning shows like “The View” and “The Daily Show” without sounding like a raving whackjob or hatemonger. In fact, he comes across as extremely likable, which in itself separates him from other GOP presidential contenders.

He doesn’t like being considered exceptional, however, telling the hosts of “The View” earlier this year such a notion sets a dangerous and insulting precedent for younger generations of Black Americans who may assume only the most gifted among them can succeed.

While there have only 11 Black U.S. senators in the entire history of our country, three are serving right now. A fourth — Kamala Harris — was a member of the Senate prior to being elected vice president of the United States. In the most recent tallies I’ve seen, there are nearly 60 Black lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives, as well as roughly 45 Hispanic Americans and 18 Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders. Two Black justices sit on the United States Supreme Court.

These things don’t happen in a racist nation.

Yeah, there’s still quite a bit of disparity there, but when you look at what’s happened in this country just over the past few decades, the evolution is stunning. One of the genius aspects of our system of government, which I think both sides overlook, is our adaptability. I mean, it’s only been about 100 years since women were allowed to vote nationally, which seems crazy now. Today women are considered serious contenders for the highest offices in the land, including Nikki Haley, an Indian American running for the Republican nomination.

The Black Heritage Trail of New Hampshire’s anniversary march this Saturday will begin in Kittery’s John Paul Jones Park at 10 a.m. and proceed into Portsmouth over Memorial Bridge, to the African Burying Ground Memorial on State Street. The event will provide an opportunity to reflect on the many successes forged by those who marched for freedom decades ago, while also reminding us there’s work to be done to achieve our ideal of “a more perfect union.”

“There is nothing wrong with having a realistic and honest accounting of history,” Scott wrote in his 2022 book "America, a Redemption Story." “From my experience, however, dwelling on the pain of the past for too long threatens to keep us mired there. When I look back, I prefer to focus on how far we’ve come. Only then can I envision how beautiful the road ahead could be.”

D. Allan Kerr is an ex-dockworker, former newspaperman and U.S. Navy veteran living in Kittery.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Kerr: America is not a racist nation — but it's not perfect, either