The Southern Racist: A look at racism inside a traditional Mississippi town.

I thought racism was dead, not because it wasn’t happening around me, but because I had been told it was. It wasn’t until I moved to Texas for college that I realized how different the culture was in the heavily populated DFW area. When I moved back home I began to see racism everywhere. From someone cutting my dad off in the parking lot and him making the comment “that’s black people for ya’” to family telling me a black friend from Texas can’t come visit because someone might see him at our house. One incident where it became particularly evident to me is when I got my recent job at Domino’s as a delivery driver. We had a delivery to Moore Manor apartments on “the other side of the tracks”. I live in a small railroad town and a set of railroad tracks divides the town in half. The majority of “whites” live on the East Side and the majority of “blacks” live on the West Side. I hopped in my car and took the delivery with no issue. As weeks went on we got another delivery to Moore Manor only this time it was at night. I loaded up, clocked out, and got to the door when I heard my manager say, “you can’t take deliveries to Moore Manor at night”. I stopped and asked why, and his response was, “it’s too dangerous.” The statement really took me by surprise. If this apartment complex would have been on the other side of the tracks, there would have been no issue. The color of their skin had deemed this delivery as a danger. After a heated discussion, my manger said, “do whatever you want, just don’t come to me when something happens because it will”. I took the delivery, got out, received the payment and a tip, and headed back to the store. The people at work looked surprised, like I had mastered the impossible. I can remember thinking, “what kind of town do I live in where people of a different race can’t get pizza delivered to their door just like everyone else.” Moore Manor is only two minutes from our store! Most Moore Manor residents have to come to a nearby church for some delivery drivers to bring them their food. Once a little girl in Moore Manor asked me why Domino’s employees wouldn’t come to her house. I wanted to scream, “BECAUSE THEY ARE BLINDED BY RACISM”, but I just replied, “some people just don’t want to”. When children can see the difference in even a delivery company, we aren’t doing something right. We are teaching children that if someone looks different than us, we can treat them like they are inferior. I just hope that little girl doesn’t grow up believing that because of the color of her skin she can’t be important. What are we teaching the next generation?