I am 65 years old. I was raised in the turbulent 60s and 70s. My father was a Cincinnati policeman and the most racist man I have ever met with the possible exemption of my grandfather.

I cannot imagine my father on patrol. He never had anything but vulgarity to say about blacks.

Luckily, I had many other influences in my life. In particular, there was Mike, an employer and also a mentor. Mike talked of the Golden Rule: Treat everyone the way you want to be treated. That stuck with me, and I have tried to live it ever since.

I went to college in the 70s, a strange time when greed and activism were strong cultural adversaries. I met African Americans and realized that they had many of the same problems, anxieties, and attitudes that I had. I became friends with many of my black American classmates, and I did not blow up as my father would have said.

After college I had many co-workers, some black, some white. I had many bosses over the years, and only one of them was a black man, Clarence, one of the best bosses I have ever had.

In 65 years, I have made friends with many people, black and white and noticed very little difference in the quality of the friendships.

I think racism is a learned trait that is just despicable. There is only one race, the human race. Treat people right and they will treat you right.

I, being a white person, can never know the challenges that racism presents to black Americans.

The videos that have brought into the open the police brutality to black Americans are shocking and enlightening.

I have studied economic data and there is no doubt that racism severely limits the amount of wealth that blacks can accumulate.

A black Americans economic opportunities are severely limited by discrimination.

Black Lives Matter is a movement that is overdue and very timely.

Jeff RichardsMoscow

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Letter to the Editor: Black Lives Matter is overdue - The Clermont Sun