Bradley addressed 150 black ministers in Los Angeles, at an annual meeting of the Congress of National Black Churches. A recent poll shows that 30 percent of Americans believe in witches, and nearly 20 percent believe in ghosts. Bradley's condescension continues the myth that racism remains black America's biggest obstacle. Seventy percent of today's black children are born to unwed mothers. In urban schools, a majority of children cannot read, write, and compute at grade level.
Polls show most urban parents want the right to choose the schools for their children.
Nearly a third of young black men find themselves under the criminal-justice system, either in jail, on parole, or on probation. Many are behind bars for drug-related offenses, never having committed a violent crime. In 1996, Congress passed the Welfare Reform Bill over the objection of critics, who called it mean-spirited. At the time, opponents predicted blood in the streets and frozen bodies in the snow. It didn't happen.