I some ways, I completely agree. I some ways, I absolutely don't agree. That used to be the case 100%, but I really don't see it now given all the advantages we give minorities in this country and given all the changes in culture in general. You can not tell me a white redneck has more opportunities than a black dude. We hand minorities all sorts of opportunities that whites can't access. It's everywhere and it negatively affects low economic whites the most.
Does a black man get looked upon with more skepticism/suspicion than a white redneck? Absolutely and that affects the ability of a black dude to "get by" but now we're starting to split hairs. We base those suspicions on stereotypes. A general black guy is going to be feared about like a white skin head if walking down a street. Both will be avoided by most whites if possible...and blacks will avoid the skinhead. What still needs to change is THAT stereotype. We shouldn't immediately fear black men..and neither should the cops. That's what IMO these incidents are really about. That's not a "war on blacks" as PhDeac and others have thrown out. It's not an issue of needing to push the notion that "black lives matter" as if the white community doesn't value their lives (which is pretty insulting actually). It's an issue with certain old stereotypes/fears that have not gone away, but they center around stereotypes that have been perpetuated by certain elements within the black community.
That's the big elephant in the room the activists don't want to accept. It's changing but it's slow and it's just going to take time.
I'll say one thing...I've had a lot of black friends/colleagues over the years from up and down the economic scale and have always been pretty aggressive in talking about these issues, even 30 years ago when it was pretty taboo to bring race issues up. I made a lot of connections that way, and a lot of friends. One of the guys here calls me the blackest white guy he's ever known. I learned a lot of things that most whites have never experienced...of which I've been grateful. Growing up in Durham in the 1950s kind of stuff. But it was always me asking all the tough questions...until about a year ago. Then I've had black guys I don't even really know bringing up this stuff and it's been really crazy lately. They want to really talk about it and are asking my opinion about cops, race issues, etc. (and I say the same things I say here). That tells me a lot. This Brown incident has caused us to turn another corner, maybe the final one because talking it out is what has to happen.
And that's a good thing.
