TOPIC: Racism and background search

Remember the old saying: "birds of a feather flock together." It is a truism. There is nothing wrong with liking your own kind and feeling more comfortable with them. That is why ethic groups and groups of new immigrants tend to congregate in the same towns and neighborhoods. It is more than just economics, it is human nature, and animal nature to like the type most similar to you. That is not racism.

Racism and slavery has been around since man began. Slavery was well known in ancient Greek and Roman times.

Please remember that Africans raided African villages and enslaved the Africans. Then other races bought the slaves and exploited them. But it was Africans that enslave Africans, first.

Who freed the slaves in the USA and stopped the African slave trade? The white man did. In the USA 550,000 white men died to free the black slaves in the American Civil War. Another 600,000 white men lost their arms and legs to free the black slaves. It was USA and British war ships, manned by white men that blockaded African ports to stop the slave ships from taking black slaves out of Africa. So, the white race did a tremendous amount of good and sacrificed life and limb to free the black slaves. Remember, there is good and bad in all races, including black and white races.

Despite all that, there is still slavery in Africa and in the Middle East today. There is even slavery in Europe and in the USA, which is now know as human trafficking, where criminals force women to work as unpaid maids and sex slaves.

Getting back to an earlier question:

2. That college degree doesn't mean shit. When you get a job around here, most employers will at LEAST do a basic background search. And base it on that. So that black person may have a masters degree if you will, but if he's got a bad record, then he's most likely going to get waved off.

With modern computers, all public information, including criminal records, is stored in a database by background search companies that specialize in providing that service. It is so easy to do an employee background search that almost all large companies just buy a background search on-line. If the black or white person has a criminal record, the prospective employer will find out about it. In that respect, it's an equal opportunity world.

I do agree that employers should do background checks on potential employees but they shouldn’t base their decision entirely on what they find. People make mistakes and we should test to see if a person is right for the job not just close the door in the face just because they may have a record.

So you would hire someone with a criminal record? I probably wouldn’t. If I do an employment background search and find out you have a record then in 90% of the cases you won’t be hired by me. I just don’t have the time and patience to keep an eye on you and see if you really deserve a second chance or not. Sorry but that’s how I see things.

Unfortunately many people think the same and I don’t blame you. You want to hire someone that does the job well and you just don’t want to have to deal with a former criminal. A criminal record might mean a lot of things. Some people that have one are amazing people and others, well, they’re not that great. But there should be more chances given to these people and the government should help with this (both the employers and the employees).