The racial situation in America had changed since Richard Wright's time. Although, racism will always be around it has greatly improved. Through education and voice many people like Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks contributed to the improvement. They are the ones that help make a difference.

Today in the United States, everyone has equal rights. Over the years the process of equal rights has slowly developed. Someone had to break the barriers. Fortunately, many people broke the barriers to make America the way it now is. Negroes could now vote and are members in our government. Thurgood Marshall was the first black man to sit on the Supreme Court. African Americans are allowed to play in national sports. Jackie Robinson was the one to break the color line in sports. He was the first African American to play major league baseball. Segregation no longer exists. Everyone all could drink from the same public water fountains, have a choice of where to sit on public transportation, share the same public restroom, and eat in the same restaurant. During Richard Wright's time all of these things were illegal. They were only legal for the whites. Negroes were severely beaten and harassed for no apparent reasons. Today, there are laws that prohibit this. The laws have certainly changed. If the NAACP didn't file continuous lawsuits the United States today would have segregated schools. Affirmative action today gives not only African American but to other minorities opportunities to further their education and have job opportunities without barriers.

The persistence, hard work, and dedication of many people is the reason why the racial situation is different from that of Richard's Wright time. If parents raise and educate their children in a hatred free environment, racism will be less seen. Though, racism will ever die, time has proven that it is slowly disappearing. What you can't see doesn't necessarily mean it's not there.

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