Deep emotions spawned out of the dark period of slavery that covered much of the world are yet to be fully understood. Although tremendous progress had been made throughout many areas of life since slavery was abolished, there are still problems that involve behaviour that prevents the word “racism” from being made obsolete.

Despite the historic “I have a dream” speech by the late icon of the civil rights movement, Martin Luther King Jr, way back on August 28, 1963, America still finds itself caught in a new chapter of divisiveness over what many feel is a failure to tackle the imbalance between how blacks are treated by police compared with the white population.

President Barack Obama, speaking on the subject, acknowledged that statistics over the years in a number of cases proved that something was not right in ensuring that proper justice was being administered without bias when it came to people of colour. All of this exploded before the world a little more than a week ago, with two incidents caught on camera involving two black men dying from action taken by police.

Even before a full investigation into both incidents is complete, the streets in many cities overflowed with people of all races and ethnic origins expressing anger over how some police officers behave as though they have had no proper training in dealing with the community. What most people find deeply disturbing is that the nation has failed adequately to address a troubling dilemma in community and police relations.

The entire matter grows even more complex when there is also evidence that some police departments in that country, through hard work, have created a closer bond with people in their communities, with programmes designed to promote a more positive relationship. However, they still face dangers in a nation where guns and violent acts of crime occur daily, and beneath the surface the issue of racism is ever-present. There is no eraser large enough to remove the stains of racial divisiveness. The subject of racism generally causes sensitive reaction from people whether they were victims or not because it penetrates the deepest parts of the human life experience.

What should never be overlooked in dealing with this subject is that throughout the struggle to eliminate racism across the planet, people of all colour and religious persuasion have made the supreme sacrifice because they dared to believe that racism in any form was unacceptable. Those people never used a gun to get their message across; they knew that killing people because of a disagreement was not the solution.

The recent tragedy in Dallas, where five police officers lost their lives while protecting the rights of citizens to protest peacefully, proved once again that those who drink from the cup of hatred are the first to be poisoned. It matters little that the person is black or white; when a mind is poisoned, no one is safe from potential harm. It would be wonderful if the word “racism” and its meaning was confined to the dictionary, but, sadly, it will take generations to make that a reality.

Even here in Bermuda, some of us have had direct experiences of racism and how one reacts usually depends on what one has learnt early in life, about the good and bad in any society. It is always a challenge to rise above negative experiences without allowing vengeful instincts to fester and to blot out strong, positive thinking. Easier said than done.

America is struggling to discuss racism in its many forms without tempers slipping over the edge, making it more difficult to confront sensitive issues in a calm and respectful manner. Unless there is a willingness to talk about a problem, the likelihood of finding a solution will remain in the distance. It is not a question of finding out who carries the most blame, but who is willing to move away from negativity into the light of positivity in learning how to respect each other as equal citizens.

With the end of slavery, racism remained throughout societies around the world — and that included Bermuda.

The American world of entertainment, which includes the motion picture industry, focused on the subject of racism as though they knew it was something that could not be ignored. I can vividly recall the reaction in what was the Colonial Opera House movie theatre on Victoria street, where the powerful and magnificent voice of William Warfield rendered Ol’ Man River, in the MGM musical Show Boat. When he finished, the theatre erupted into thunderous applause that shook the ceiling. It was not just the quality of his voice, but the words that captured the plight of blacks in the Deep South. The road ahead was going to be truly bumpy. Incidentally, the Colonial Opera House was never segregated.

Just as Warfield’s solo moved audiences around the world, it is to be hoped that the many voices raised after the vicious tragedy in Texas will resonate throughout the hearts and minds of every human who believes in justice and freedom to live peacefully. No one is expecting a significant change overnight in bringing people closer together.

The world is on an unstoppable path to diversity and the page must be turned to embrace a better day without hatred and bigotry. If nothing else, what happened in Texas could turn out to be another step in trying to make the word “racism” redundant.