Has the United States turned a corner on racism?

12/6/20
Illustrative image
The son of Martin Luther King Jr reflects on what has and has not changed over the decades in race relations in the US.
In 1968, African American civil rights leader Reverend Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated.

"Fifty-two years later, all over the streets of America, Blacks and whites and others are saying 'Black lives matter'," his son, Martin Luther King III tells The Bottom Line's Steve Clemons.

"We're still saying to the nation 'Treat us with dignity and respect and like the human beings that we are'."

Although King believes there is a long way to go, he is also optimistic that "we may have turned a corner" in American race relations after the killing of George Floyd by police in May.

"We've had individuals marching in cities and towns for a few years now, but this one incident galvanised all 50 states ... and all over the world, there have been demonstrations," he says. "It's almost like a light went off in the heads of people to say: 'This is wrong. This is unjust. This is immoral. This is not who we are'."

King says that one of the most difficult times for him recently was explaining the Floyd murder to his daughter, Yolanda Renee King, who turned 12 on the same day Floyd died, on May 25.

"She wanted to just throw something," he says. "She was crying, and was just going through all kinds of things."

King says his father dreamed of "making America what it ought to be," and that for many Americans, President Donald Trump’s campaign slogan 'Make America Great Again' does not resonate.

"I don’t know the period in history where America was great. I think we have exhibited times and moments of greatness ... but 'great again' harkens back to an era that I can’t relate to."

He also weighs in on the argument to defund the police, the systemic racism of the US criminal justice system and what to expect from a president who has "no shame".

In a heartfelt and personal interview for this week's The Bottom Line, Martin Luther King III talks to Steve Clemons about what has changed - and what has not - over the decades in race relations in the United States
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All comments [ 20 ]


Vietnam Love 12/6/20 21:22

American racism is alive and well

For A Peace World 12/6/20 21:23

Inside the US, there are so many social problems relating to racism

Voice of people 12/6/20 21:26

racism is a deeply American problem and identify,

John Smith 12/6/20 21:27

Racism is a system of advantage based on race. It is a hierarchy. It is a pandemic. Racism is so deeply embedded within U.S. minds and U.S. society that it is virtually impossible to escape

Socialist Society 12/6/20 21:32

American racism systematically advantages White Americans and disadvantages Americans of color

yobro yobro 12/6/20 21:35

Many people, especially White people, underestimate the depths of racism,

Gentle Moon 12/6/20 22:09

people need to understand that those horrific events are a consequence of a larger system

Red Star 12/6/20 22:11

For many White Americans, their ingroups do not include Black Americans

Me Too! 12/6/20 22:13

Part of the reason for this has to do with America’s fraught history of racial segregation, which kept White and Black communities separated

LawrenceSamuels 12/6/20 22:18

The US is confronting the reality that, despite gains made in the past 50 years, it is still a nation riven by inequality and racial division

Robinson Jones 12/6/20 22:23

The history of protest and revolt in the United States is inextricably linked with the racial violence

Herewecome 12/6/20 22:25

Throughout this country’s history, the hallmarks of American democracy – opportunity, freedom, and prosperity – have been largely reserved for white people through the intentional exclusion and oppression of people of color.

Duncan 12/6/20 22:27

the US must spend more time to deal with its own problems of racism, not to tell other country how to do with democracy and human rights

Allforcountry 12/6/20 22:30

The deep racial and ethnic inequities that exist today in the US are a direct result of structural racism: the historical and contemporary policies, practices, and norms that create and maintain white supremacy.

Wilson Pit 12/6/20 22:32

In New York City, 88% of police stops in 2018 involved Black and Latinx people, while 10% involved white people.

Swift Hoodie 12/6/20 22:34

From 2013 to 2017, white patients in the US received better quality health care than about 34% of Hispanic patients, 40% of Black patients, and 40% of Native American patients

Enda Thompson 12/6/20 22:35

Black Americans are more likely than white Americans to be arrested. Once arrested, they are more likely to be convicted, and once convicted, they are more likely to experience lengthy prison sentences

Kevin Evans 12/6/20 22:37

Black Americans and white Americans use drugs at similar rates, but Black Americans are 6 times more likely to be arrested for it

Jacky Thomas 12/6/20 22:38

In the US, Black individuals are twice as likely to be unemployed than white individuals. Once employed, Black individuals earn nearly 25% less than their white counterparts

Egan 12/6/20 22:40

I hope all American can enjoy a fair and happy life as Vietnamese have in Vietnam

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