CBS also ran a companion piece, The Future of Race Relations, which describes one girl's creation of a computer-based pen pal program between youth in her hometown of Anacortes, WA and San Diego, CA. In this piece, it is reported that about one-quarter of adults believe race problems will increase in the coming years.
If I had to lay odds on which group is correct about racism increasing or decreasing, I would bet in favor of the youthful view. I'm a strong believer in the power of positive thinking; I'm also enough of a realist to know that one day, all the negative-thinking adults will die. And who will be left? The young people who believe that discrimination is diminishing. Coupled with the fact that 3 out of 4 of the young people polled said they have at least one close friend of another race, I see this as a strong ray of hope for the country.
Multi-Cultural Youth Sites
Following are a few of the sites I found on the web which are youth-driven organizations focusing on racism, discrimination and cooperation.
Youth Making a Change, a San Francisco-based organization
City Kids Foundation of New York City.
YouthLink, which focuses on youth empowerment in a variety of topics; the organization also offers grant funding for youth initiatives which fit its mission.
Race Perception Polls
A local organization in my hometown recently conducted - or tried to conduct - a telephone survey to determine citizens' views about racial issues. I was pretty stunned to learn that the survey was cancelled because people kept hanging up on the interviewers, not just some of the people but everyone who answered the phone. In a city with such racial diversity as ours, this response surely means something.
For anyone out there who may be planning such a poll in the future, Marion County, Indiana successfully conducted two such polls, one in 1992 and another in 1997. This link includes the exact questions asked as well as the results.
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