The author seems to get the picture. Not a bad article, actually.
“While racial profiling and stereotyping can never be defended, the sad truth is hip-hop culture and rap music create, perpetuate and deepen existing stereotypes. We in the black community must understand that racial profiling, like stereotyping, is simply the application of statistical probabilities to situations in a hurried world.
The majority of African-Americans who reject this new culture in silence pay a heavy price in the unjust stereotypes they often are subjected to. But when a young black male is watched closely in a store, is it a racist action by the clerk or a rational action based on experience?
More important is the fact that young African-American men are internalizing the images our cultural leaders are modeling for them.
It is appropriate for President Obama to continue to focus on the legal issues of gun control, “stop and frisk” and stand-your-ground laws, as well as on policy questions pertaining to education and jobs. But if he really wants to move the needle, he should ask his wife to spotlight the cultural challenges facing our black youths.
As my parents used to say: “If you don’t respect yourself, no one else will.”
We in the black community must understand and embrace that simple truth.”
Key point.
If you don't like it, change those statistical probabilities.
We in the black community
"Black Community" is a racist concept. So is "White Community", "Hispanic Community", "Asian Community", etc. Either we accept that to some extent we're all engaged in racist (or at least racial) thinking ... and it's OK ... and quit ranting about racism as being the greatest evil ever, or we completely abolish race-based community concepts. It's thoroughly hypocritical to identify oneself as being part of the "black community" and then complain about anybody engaging in "racism", or "racial profiling", or some such.