As America continues to heal from the tragic death of George Floyd and the subsequent trial and conviction of Derek Chauvin, the issue of race is once again front and center on the minds of the American people. Which begs the question: “are race relations getting worse in America?” At first glance it might appear that the answer is an emphatic yes. Media coverage of police killing unarmed black men, Black Lives Matter protests, a resurgence of white supremacist groups, and anti-Asian attacks, could definitely make the case that race relations are on the decline.

But are they, really?

During his presidential address to Congress, President Joe Biden stated: “And we won’t ignore what our intelligence agency has determined to be the most lethal terrorist threat to our homeland today, white supremacy’s terrorism.” This statement alone is reason enough to believe race relations are getting worse.

In his rebuttal to the president’s address, Tim Scott, who happens to be the only black republican senator, made a statement that appeared to completely contradict the president’s statement. He said: “America is not a racist country.” His statement set off a firestorm of conversations and media coverage claiming that he was an uncle Tom and republican puppet that was completely out of touch with his “blackness” and was denying there is still systemic racism in this country.

As a man who happens to be black, who has been accused of being a sellout because of my optimism, I can empathize with Tim Scott. I’m definitely not a republican and in most cases, I completely disagree with his ideology and political views, but I will admit that I agree with his assertion that America is not a racist country and I’d like to explain why I believe this.

So, let’s establish what constitutes a racist country? Is it the racist systems and policies that have been in place for hundreds of years? Is it a racist media that generally focuses on perpetuating negative stereotypes about black people? Is it the fact that America chose a president who continuously promoted white supremacy? How would you define a racist country?

From my perspective, a racist country is one in which the majority of people hold racist and white supremacist ideals. Obviously, there was a time in this country when this was the reality, and at the time, the collective consciousness of the country was definitely racist. Since the majority of white people at the time held these racist views, they created and implemented racist policies and systems that intentionally promoted white supremacy and oppressed people of color, and these systems and policies are still impacting people of color today.

But as the country grew more and more diverse, the consciousness of the country began to shift. Not because white people wanted it to, but because black people became committed to equality, and as a result, the racists systems and policies began to change. As the number of black people increased and more and more people of color gained access to education and opportunities, white people had no other choice but to recognize they were not superior and had to accept the truth that we are all equals.

When the majority of white people were racists, it was driven by what I call, the CWBS, which stands for, the Collective White Belief System. The CWBS is what created slavery and all of the other atrocities people of color have had to deal with.

In just a few short years white people will actually become the minority in this country, as a result, the CWBS has to evolve. If you pay attention to the younger generation you should be able to see the shift that is already occurring in the CWBS. Look at the amount of white people who are marching in the BLM protests. Look at the number of white people who are talking about white privilege and white fragility. Therefore, there is a shift in consciousness that is occurring and each generation will be less and less racist. The CWBS will evolve to the CHBS, which is the Collective Human Belief System.

This isn’t my projection, it’s evolution. Human beings are still evolving. If you think about human beings from an evolutionary process that has been evolving for hundreds of thousands of years, the progress we’ve made in my short 60-year lifetime tells me that the trajectory we are on is definitely reasons for optimism.

So, when I say America is not a racist country, that is why I believe that. This doesn’t deny that there are still a lot of racists people and racist policies that are still having a negative impact on people of color in this country, it means the majority of people in this country are not racists and it is that shift in consciousness that will change the minds and hearts of people of all races to come to the understanding we are all the same.

Coach Michael Taylor is the author of: The Good News Is… The Future Is Brighter Than You Think. He considers himself to be an irrepressible optimist with a passion for the impossible who happens to be an entrepreneur, author of 9 books, a motivational speaker, and radio & TV host.

www.coachmichaeltaylor.com