I was referring to what you euphemistically refer to as the civil
disorders which followed the acquital of the the police officers who, in
my view, unjustifiably and unlawfully beat Rodney King. Spontaneous
expressions of racism, while by no means to be condoned, are, again in
my view, less socially damaging than deliberate, even planned, racist acts
which, more often than not, form part of a continuing pattern that
undermines the integrity of our social institutions. This is the
distinction I was trying to make to support the position that motivation
is an integral component of racism. The underlying causes of racist
behavior are of less importance than whether or not that behavior is
carried out with full awareness and with intent to discriminate against or,
in the extreme, maim or kill another of a different race.
Ray Miller
