...we should never forget how strong the sting of exclusion or second-class citizenry is (why do you think Thomas Nast represented the GOP with the elephant?). Even the original Constitution of the US, while clearly a statement of liberty and individual rights, made an exclusion for slaves, denying them full citizenship. Clarence Thomas called this "the fundamental contradiction" of the Constitution. Even by mid-20th century, almost a century after slavery was abolished, Southern politicans evoked "states' rights" in defense of segregation. Why do you think Whittaker Chambers was a communist in the 30s? He was an idealist, and he saw the essential hypocrisy of how blacks, "the most God-fearing and man-despised people in history," were treated in the US.
We must be aware of this history, and be willing to talk about it openly. Democrats talk about it in defense of their policies, thereby gaining the support of blacks. We must continually reinforce the choice that voters have - between moving closer to the ideal of a color-blind society, or traveling further down the road of race-conscious politics. Though we are conservatives, we must be ceaselessly radical in breaking down the barriers to equal protection before the law.
"...we must be ceaselessly radical in breaking down the barriers to equal protection before the law."
...Agreed!