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Whenever we discuss race here, there is always a chance that a few hyper vocal folks will post thoughtless comments of the top of their heads which will embarrass Free Republic and make the black FR members feel uncomfortable.

True, but sometimes merely by sharing our life experiences get us into trouble as well. You may not mean to offend people, but someone will always get offended. In my case, I tend to offend folks on the religion threads without intending to, but the effect is the same.

People have historically segregated themselves by cultures, subcultures and religion. A major difference in this country is that, whatever the ethnic group, the second generation at least picks up a working knowledge of English and takes up a love of football, hotdogs, and discount shopping at big box stores. In a sense we have a shared culture, on the other hand we don't. No offense to my Southern friends, or my Califonicator friends, but this New Yorker experiences culture shock even when among WHITE folk in those areas.

I've had very candid discussions about race relations with plenty of black people, including co-workers who are not politically conservative. The key is to (A) listen, (B) talk to each other like human beings, and (C) to be polite and respectful. If one looks for a civil discussion of race relations, one can find one if one is civil.