I personally have never understood why one man may judge another based on the colour of skin. From a line in a favorite movie of mine: "any man who judges the worth of another man based on his skin colour is a fool".
It is hard not to stereotype (and I have fallen short) but I have tried hard to judge individuals based on their life deeds and not on their nationality. Once again Dr. Ron Paul has provided some nice commentary over the years which I believe sheds light on how even the US government (inadvertently) has made the situation worse.
One major problem, says Ron Paul, is that people constantly align themselves in groups and derive their rights as belonging to a group (whether a racial group or social group). These groups then lobby the government for monetary support which then further alienates them from the rest of society. Ron advocates a philosophy of individualism. Instead of seeing people as belonging to a certain group, see them as individuals. Since we derive our rights from our maker, every person should be treated the same way.
Hate can become an overwhelming disease. I am quite certain of this. It can affect how people treat others, how they speak, think and act. In American History X (an extremely powerful movie) the lead character is at a crossroads in his life. As a devout skinhead, he has realized that his life's choices had not advanced him anywhere. His former high school teacher (who is black) visits him in prison after he is assaulted by his skinhead clan (his so-called friends and protectors). His former teacher asks him a very important question: "has anything you've done (the hate, the skinhead gang, his violence) made your life better"? His obvious answer was no.
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