A different picture

Re: Josh Heath’s “Here’s what white people don’t know”. 11/1/17.

Josh Heath’s column couldn’t be more insulting to America and many Americans.

He paints a picture of a wholly racist society and ignored the progress of race relations over the past 50-60 years. I’ll issue the caveat that there’s been a set-back with the Obama Administration setting tones taking cultures back to a time of multi-decades ago but that’s another topic.

Of course there are ignorant racist people existing and I offer they are limited to a minority in America. America overall is a country of blend and mix and acceptance. When I was growing up the theme was “America the melting pot”. Bigoted attitudes are definitely not limited to geography; they’re rather prevalent in much of the rest of the world.

Heath cites various studies from sources with no window into what the mindset was to reach a certain conclusion. His words also reflect that all white people are born into wealth. People of any color born into wealth will probably always live with it.

Mr. Heath is a youthful college student; not someone who has workplace experience, especially not through the 70s and 80s. Minorities, including gender, not just skin color were given great advantages. It was called “affirmative action,” I saw it; I lived it, as did many others whom I’m sure read the subject commentary.

It’s evident that the commentary content obviously concludes it was not successful…. yet, spoken or unspoken, affirmative action still exists today.

One of the eye-openers I witnessed was that the minority hires at a level of managing people, rarely hired minorities under them. Frankly, that was very surprising and I made it a personal point not to practice that.

I don’t know where Mr. Heath is experiencing all of this maltreatment of black people, but I’m very happy it isn’t in my neighborhood, family or workplace.

Betty Arenson Valencia