racepol, academic, lost futures, sadness
I took a Socio 101 course in college. I loved it. And I could have absolutely sworn that I read a quote in our textbook from an African-American researcher who proposed that racial relations improve in direct proportion to the number of civil, open conversations happening between people of different races, as equals and as part of daily life, where racial politics is not involved.
I really wish I had that textbook, could confirm the source, and could get the details. What I have instead is a cup of tears, from pondering just how far away we've drifted away from that ideal.