Steve Campbell columnist

Deny it if it makes you feel better, but the truth is, racism is still alive and kicking in the land of the free. What's even sadder is that nothing is being done to eliminate it. Oh sure, we've got affirmative action, but that's just a Band-Aid, covering up the problem so that mainstream America can feel good about all of the progress we've made since the civil rights movement.

If we really want to combat racism, then we're going to have to start with education.

In an ideal world, parents would teach their kids, before they started going to school, about the destruction of racism. A white child would go to school, see one of his black classmates, and wonder if they'll be on the same team at recess rather than wondering, "What's wrong with that kid? Why is he so different?"

Instead, many parents, uneducated themselves, simply pass down what their parents passed down to them and the cycle continues. So if the parents are unwilling, or sometimes unable, to educate their children, then it must fall on the shoulders of America's education system.

I don't mean devoting a part of history to teaching kids about the Emancipation Proclamation or giving a class on George Washington Carver. I'm talking about developing a standard curriculum, adopted nationwide, that is dedicated to educating our youth about black history and what it is like to be growing up as a black American in today's society.

Racism thrives on ignorance, and there's plenty of that in America's schools. Imagine a young black child, going to school and having to face insults and ridicule at the hands of his classmates, based solely on the color of his skin. Then, try imagining that he has to go through that year after year as he completes grade school. What is going through his mind as he's walking to school, knowing that there's nothing he can do to change the situation that he's in?

If a Jewish boy goes to a school and doesn't want to face the possibility of ridicule, he simply keeps quiet or tells his good friend, "Don't tell anybody I'm Jewish." So what is a young black child to say? "Hey, don't tell anybody I'm black?"

It's no wonder that many black kids grow up with built-up hostility and anger. This, however, is not justification for black men leading a life of crime and blaming it on their childhood, just as it wouldn't be acceptable for a white man to justify his racial intolerance simply because the education system didn't teach him any better.

Education within the school system is only a start. The responsibility of educating the ignorant adults of America must lie on the shoulders of black Americans.

It's time for members of the black community to stand up against those who are creating these negative stereotypes. As a white man, I am ashamed of other white Americans who make me look bad with acts of racism. I am not afraid to stand up and say they are wrong. If enough people do that, maybe it will make a difference. This is the same attitude that must be taken by black Americans.

If I were to criticize gangsta rap and say that it promotes violence and is demeaning to black women, then I may or may not raise a few eyebrows among the black community. But what would happen if a black person said the same thing? And if enough black Americans spoke out, would it make a difference?

Something must be said for double standards also. These double standards continue to divide people and can only be destructive to society's effort to rid America of racism.

Read the following statements:

"His black ass can't even play basketball." Said by a white person.

"That white cracker sure can't play basketball." Said by a black person.

The first is considered racist and contributing to a stereotype. As a whole, white Americans will not accept this as appropriate language. The second statement, while also racist and contributing to a stereotype, is widely accepted in the black community, and nobody thinks twice about the possibility of it being racist toward white people.

And what about this statement?

"Yo nigga, wuzzup?"

Is this a racist statement? Should it be considered inappropriate? Is it okay for a black person to say this and not a white person?

If we really want to see an end to racism, then we need to start educating. Everybody.