Despite ‘Enormous Strides,’ Minorities Still Face Barriers, President Says
Christopher Gregory/The New York Times
Obama on Equal Access to College: At a town hall meeting at Binghamton University, the president was asked how his plan will ensure that underrepresented groups will be able to have access to higher education.
By JON HURDLE and PETER BAKER
Published: August 23, 2013
SCRANTON, Pa. — President Obama declared on Friday that the United States had made “enormous strides” in race relations since the March on Washington 50 years ago, but said “institutional barriers” for African-Americans and other minorities still existed and must be overcome.
Speaking at a town hall-style meeting at Binghamton University in New York, Mr. Obama said that even though there was less overt discrimination in modern society, the legacy of slavery and Jim Crow continued to afflict many in America. He said the economic troubles of recent years had exacerbated divisions across racial and class lines.
“Fifty years after the March on Washington and the ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, obviously we’ve made enormous strides,” Mr. Obama said in response to a question from a professor of African-American studies. “I’m a testament to it. You’re a testament to it.” He added that “we know that some discrimination still exists, although nothing like what existed 50 years ago.”
“But,” he added, “let’s assume that we eliminated all