If race is a natural division, it is easy to dismiss the glaring differences in people’s welfare as fair and even insurmountable; even liberals could feel comfortable with the current pace of racial progress, which leaves huge gaps between white and nonwhite well-being. But if race is a political system, then we must use political means to end its harmful impact on our society. So we cannot ditch the concept of race altogether. Paying attention to race as a political system—which is what it really is—is essential to fighting racism.
