When Barack Obama became the first African-American President of the United States, some assumed Americans had moved past their collective history of divisive race relations. It quickly became clear that was not the case.
Some argue that this backlash set the stage for the candidacy and presidency of Donald Trump eight years later. Whatever the connection, people on all sides of our political debates have struggled to understand the powerful way race relations influence our political debates.
Miami Herald columnist Leonard Pitts discusses how we reached this divisive point in American politics, and the role race plays in driving that tension. He also discusses how racial gerrymandering and other voter suppression efforts shapes the landscape on which the larger battle is waged.
