I would have denied it vigorously because I prided myself on being an exponent of black consciousness, but in a crisis something deeper had emerged: I had accepted a white definition of existence, that whites were somehow superior to and more competent than blacks.
This "brainwashing" is part of what makes it important to have extaordinary visibility for black accomplishments and value. This purpose can be lost on both black and white and it becomes competitive in nature.
