Thank you for these memories, Randy Shingler. I also lived in the deep south in my youth, though a bit later on than you did, and as a transplant from Ohio. I was shocked by casually overt racism expressed so often with that WORD.

One interaction with some boys behind the church one day had a profound impact on me. I wonder if we’ll ever reach a day when systemic racism doesn’t influence how we Americans think.

What it’s Like to Grow up Racist