The nation, of course, is our own. The terrorist acts are the burning of
over 30 churches with predominantly black congregations over the last
eighteen months. The opposition leaders are Dick Armey, Majority Leader
of the House of Representatives; David Beasley, Governor of South
Carolina; and Haley Barbour, Republican national chairman.
How could things have come to such a pass? Why do some of our leaders
respond with partisan whining to thoughtful, appropriate comments on one
of our nation's greatest problems? How can we get the national
discussion of our racial and ethnic divisions back on track?
Let's start by looking at the facts.
Despite common perceptions to the contrary, racial and ethnic
discrimination remains widespread. Evidence from recent matched-pair
studies shows that both black and Hispanic households face a 50 percent
chance of encountering some form of unfavorable treatment each time they
visit a housing agent. They may be totally excluded from available
housing, shown fewer units than equally qualified whites, offered less
assistance in finding a mortgage, or steered to minority neighborhoods.
Extensive recent evidence indicates that minorities are more likely than
equally qualified whites to be turned down for a mortgage, more likely
to be offered a mortgage on unfavorable terms, and less likely to be
given assistance in filling out a mortgage application. Recent
matched-pair studies of hiring practices reveal that young black and
Hispanic men are less likely than equally qualified whites to be offered
a job.
Racial and ethnic disparities in economic and social outcomes, which
reflect past and current discrimination, remain disturbingly large. The
black male unemployment rate, for example, is more than twice the white
male rate, the black poverty rate is almost three times the white
poverty rate, the black homeownership rate is twenty-five percentage
points lower than the white homeownership rate, and blacks are far more
likely than whites to attend high-poverty schools. Disparities between
Hispanics and nonHispanic whites are almost as large. These disparities,
along with disparities in many other outcomes, have persisted for
decades, often without any decline.
Discrimination, disparities, and divisions impose large costs not only
on minority citizens, but also on our society as a whole. In today's
competitive global economy, we place ourselves at a disadvantage when
must spend so much time and money dealing with racial and ethnic
conflict, and we cannot afford to undermine the productivity of so many
of our citizens.
In
our democratic society, there is plenty of room for reasonable people to
disagree about the best way to enforce anti-discrimination legislation
or the best form of affirmative action.
But there is no place for leaders who belittle attempts to bring about
racial and ethnic healing, who try to divide us for partisan advantage,
who pretend there is no discrimination, or who act as if racial and
ethnic disparities will disappear if we simply ignore them.
We
call on all leaders of both parties and on national figures outside of
government to join President Clinton in denouncing racial and ethnic
hatred, to support the enforcement of anti-discrimination legislation,
and to search for new ways to break down the barriers that divide us
along racial and ethnic lines.