Sir, I say this with as much respect as I can muster: Absent significant study, it is absolutely not the place of someone who is a member of the racial majority to declare the extent or impact of racism. You simply have no idea what you're talking about.
A mixed race man was, indeed, elected to high office. He was elected over the objections of people who claimed him to be, among other things:
- A Kenyan
- A secret muslim
- A liar inelegible for the presidency under the terms of Section I, Article II of the United States constitution
These claims have been made and repeated for over four years. They are made, in part, because Barack Obama looks different from the men who have previously run the country. They are repeated because that fact scares the absolute shit out of a certain subset of the country.
Racism – far from vanquished – has proven to be a politically expedient tool. (Though, thankfully, one with toxic side effects.)
Have we made progress since the civil war and the civil rights movement? Yeah.
But racism is an ugly, nasty force that persists in both overt and subtle ways. It's not over. And for the people who must still grapple with its effects, it's a big problem.