i'm not racist, i never say the 'n' word

You are racist. It's been proven. A recent study showed that infants responded more favorably to people of similar ethnic backgrounds. That is, to people who had similar features and spoke their natural language. If you think about our tribal past as human beings, this makes sense. In a setting in which there existed competing tribes of people, it would be beneficial to identify with your own tribe, as a survival instinct. If you were to instinctively identify with members of other tribes as your own, than you would be likely to find yourself in compromising situations.

We need to first recognize this impulse, rather than deny it. We need to recognize that we instinctively view people as different and as intelligent, modern beings, and we need to understand that it is no longer a valid impulse. It no longer serves the greater interest and in order to evolve we need to make a conscious decision to act, and to make ourselves think, in defiance of it.