What Sterling Speirn and
the W.K. Kellogg Foundation call "structural racism" is remarkably
similar to the issues that children of very poor white families face ("Structural
Racism Still Abounds and We're Fighting It," Letters, May 27).
Where he uses the term "vulnerable children of color," I would
replace it with vulnerable children. It really doesn't matter what color
your skin is if you have parents who don't care to ensure that you get
an education, proper health care, learn how to dress and speak in an
acceptable fashion and otherwise fit in with the prevailing culture.
My suggestion to Mr.
Speirn is to quit using color as a basis for anything. Use the resources
of the foundation to assist children of all races to have a better
opportunity.
That child of a poor white family has just as many disadvantages
(and more so as there are no scholarship or hiring preferences for that
child) as the children of a poor black family. The corollary is also
true, that children of a caring and loving black family that sacrifices
so that the children receive a good education and basic health care have
just as much opportunity as white children in a good, caring family.
It isn't about skin
color.
Larry Andreano
Alto, Mich.
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 