Dear Editor,
I came across some interesting facts about race relations in the United States of America which certainly do not speak well of American society from a sociological perspective.
According to the article, less than ten per cent of African Americans in the United States complete a university degree even though they have higher levels of educational attainment rates at pre-university levels.
According to the article, over ten per cent of African Americans are unemployed compared to less than five per cent Whites.
In almost every indicator of social and economic progress Whites outnumber Blacks by a significant margin.
What the statistics indicate is that there still exists what economists refer to as structural poverty which militates against African Americans and other minority groups despite talk about America being the land of opportunity in which all Americans regardless of colour or creed are provided with equal opportunity to grow and develop.
In this regard, President Obama must be given credit for taking executive action to regularize the status of illegal immigrants who work hard to develop the American economy but do not benefit proportionally in terms of the distribution of social and economic goods and services.
Yours faithfully,
Hydar Ally
