Please, god, don't talk to me about race.

"Please, god, don't talk to me about race," said Melissa Harris Perry on her two hour program this Sunday morning.  That was her reaction to the Starbucks' campaign to open a discussion on race relations. About half the African Americans I've seen on TV have said something similar. The other half think that having a giant corporation interested in a conversation on race might be a start.

I watch Perry's program regularly. As an academic she brings something different to television. The difference ranges from her commanding skill at analysis to a concern about exactly how many angels can dance on the pinhead of a dean. Her guests are human beings, not professional network talking-pointers. In short, you get something fresh from her, and I recommend the discussion.

What troubles me is the fact that our racial attitudes and divisions are so complicated and painful that many black leaders have rejected with outrage Starbucks' awkward attempt to begin a conversation. That's not helpful. Racism is America's original sin, central to our national problems. Racism, sexism and elitism corrupt us. We need to talk, even if it hurts.