"... treated as individuals, human beings do not present great problems, but when they are treated as arbitrary racial groups, social and international difficulties are created. It is our task to retain the individual as that foundation of society, irrespective of his race, color, or religion. It is a problem we must face and solve - no matter what the cost may be to our false dignity or imagined self-interest. Left unsolved, the cost will prove beyond calculation."
Ansel Adams, Born Free and Equal
Also lived in the South all of my life and I have never seen racism against black people. I’m sure the skin heads don’t like them, but normal everyday people don’t pay attention to skin color, in my area anyway.
I was at a doctor’s office once and a mother and daughter from California were there. They were bad-mouthing the South and the people. Finally, a farmer asked them why they hated the South and us so much. They said the racism is out in the open. They were white. The farmer asked what they meant by racism.
Long story short, it was that we treat them as equals. We don’t treat them as a special class. We don’t pander. That’s how we are racist according to a liberal. Most of the people that grew up in the South are figuratively color blind.
Personally, I think there are more racists up North and out West than here.