As I was reading through the comments, I noticed that all the responses re: race as a social construct was from white people, and every one of the responses from African-Americans were about praise, etc. What does that tell us? In my opinion, racism is a heart issue. There is hope; people can have a change of heart.

I was estranged from my family for 40 years because of my choice to marry a man of color. Now we have a family of 23 people ranging comprising White, Native, Hispanic, and African-American.

My parents finally had a change of heart in their 70s. My husband and I stayed with them for a while to take care of them about 10 years before they died. Previously, they would not have allowed a person of color to darken their doorstep (their words). People must look within before they look out, and do what is in their power to do.