Yes, Mike. Vast progress has been made. No question. When I was born, miscegenation was illegal in many states. Love was ruled while I was alive and kicking. So it's not some "distant past" (though I am old!).

1poorlady says that sometimes she is treated differently if I am there versus when she is on her own. 1poorkid experienced it when she was public-facing working in a sandwich shop.

So, yes...we are better than we were. But we're still racist. And the problem is that a lot of it is institutional; so deeply embedded in peoples' circumstances (e.g. they are where they are because of past racist policies), and sometimes the law.

We say "racist", but it is actually more complex than just guys in pointy white hats. They are the ones you see, and can easily denigrate as "racist". But it is so much more complex when you say the US is racist.