The Presidential victory for Barack Obama is, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the most significant events in American History.  But I knew that as soon as he was elected, some disillusioned individuals would suggest that race relations are somehow “fixed” now that the president is black. Is it really, now? Ask those black children who weren’t allowed to swim how much better it is. And what about a black Harvard professor being harassed and discriminated against IN HIS OWN HOME? America is no different today than it was before anyone had ever heard of Barack Obama. That is why it is critical that as black educators we prepare our students to compete in a world in which their DNA will inevitably present an obstacle. They need to understand that although they must never use their ethnicity as an excuse, they do need to accept that it will be a factor. That is, unless you think America has changed.