Trayvon, Barack and white hysteria

After President Obama's musings on the Trayvon Martin case were broadcast today, the usual suspects waxed hysterical that the president should even imply that race may still be an issue in these United States.  The media, even the liberal fringes tip-toed around the 500 lb. gorilla throughout the trial and even in the aftermath.  Now, with protestors camped out in Rick Scott's office and the white supremacist hordes gloating that it's now OK to shoot a black man for no apparent reason, the president chose this moment to weigh in on the situation now facing black men who are not president.   As I read some of the remarks, I saw myself as a teenager, vaguely uneasy in the presence of aggressive black youths.   As I got to know many of my contemporaries, I realized the swagger and menace some of these black men projected was calculated to cover for their perceived inadequacies.  The same is true of young white men in similar circumstances.  The stereotype of the "big black buck" who terrorizes white women especially is as pernicious as it is widespread among many.  The threatening "other" is as old as human civilization and will take a long time to debunk.  The self evident loathing which many direct at the first black president is proof that the average black man will be teaching his children and grandchildren the tricks of racial profiling for several more generations.   In the meantime it would behoove the non racists among us to stand up to the worst of the assholes who equate color with character.