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Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a permanent attitude
[Martin Luther King, Jr]

Richard Dawkins writes: "We [all] have Africa in our blood and Africa has our bones. We are all Africans."

See Dawkins' I speak of Africa and Golden Joys (Richard Dawkins was born in Kenya, as was the father of America's President Barack Obama.)

Dawkins writes: The real Africa, humanity's cradle, is more magical than anything C.S. Lewis could dream up.

Is racial healing genuinely possible?

"Understand the differences; act on the commonalities." - Andrew Masondo, African National Congress, ANC

"The time for the healing of the wounds has come. The moment to bridge the chasms that divide us has come. The time to build is upon us." - Nelson Mandela

"Differences are not intended to separate, to alienate. We are different precisely in order to realize our need of one another." - Desmond Tutu

"Even when we interact daily with people of other ethnic groups, we rarely talk about racial issues. It seems too scary to people. But we must start doing it! We have to break down the barriers between us and talk openly, honestly, and with respect. The rewards far outweigh any concerns we may have." - Sue Alperin, dialogue participant

"It was during those long and lonely years that my hunger for the freedom of our own people became a hunger for the freedom of all people, white and black. I knew as well as I knew anything that the oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed. A man who takes away another man's freedom is a prisoner of hatred, he is locked behind bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness. I am not truly free if I am taking away someone else's freedom, just as surely as I am not free when my freedom is taken from me. The oppressed and the oppressor alike are robbed of their humanity." - Nelson Mandela ' Long Walk to Freedom'

"We are faced with having to learn again about interdependency and the need for rootedness after several centuries of having systematically -- and proudly -- dismantled our roots, ties, and traditions. We had grown so tall we thought we could afford to cut the roots that held us down, only to discover that the tallest trees need the most elaborate roots of all." - Paul L. Wachtel

"We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies." - Martin Luther King, Jr.

"Forgiving and being reconciled to our enemies or our loved ones are not about pretending that things are other than they are. It is not about patting one another on the back and turning a blind eye to the wrong. True reconciliation exposes the awfulness, the abuse, the hurt, the truth. It could even sometimes make things worse. It is a risky undertaking but in the end it is worthwhile, because in the end only an honest confrontation with reality can bring real healing. Superficial reconciliation can bring only superficial healing." - Desmond Tutu More Desmond Tutu