I don't really have much of an opinion on this, as I know absolutely nothing about how it feels to be in that situation. I'd love to say that I wouldn't act this way, but I honestly don't know. I've grown up, whether I like to admit it or not, with a tremendous amount of privilege. I have had things that a lot of people would dream of having (everything from a solid family structure, to little to no student debt). In no way does this mean that I haven't had to work my butt off for what I've got, but I'd be extremely naive to think that others haven't had to work harder, and I don't mean because of their own physical abilities.
As far as Sharpton and the NAACP, they are jokes (as are most political figures), but the issues that they represent are not. It's very easy to spot a racist, but spotting racism, especially structural or systemic, is not so easy. It is not, dare I say it, black and white, and not right or wrong. That would be like me thinking that when someone says I've been privileged it means that they are saying that I haven't worked hard to get where I am. The two aren't mutually exclusive. Similarly, when someone talks about race and how I, as a member of society, am part of a system that is not equal, doesn't mean that they are saying I'm racist, just that a system such as that is in place. I truly think that this is why a lot of people, mainly white, get upset or defensive when people talk about racism. I used to think that racism is binary (yes/no, did/didn't), which it isn't. When we think it's binary, we assume that if we acknowledge it, it means that we have automatically committed a direct act. It's almost as if we (again, at least in my own experience, and how I used to think) see it as some sort of self-incrimination.
For me it helps a lot to realize that issues such as these are not new, and are most likely as old as society. These issues aren't unique to the U.S., nor this generation. Inequalities have been present for a very long time, and in a very diverse range of societies. We've never been perfect, but saying we never will be precludes us from any chance of achieving equality. Just as this stuff didn't arise quickly, although it might manifest itself in new ways, it won't be solved quickly. Personally, whenever stuff like this comes up I think of a quote by the late Eduardo Galeano. He was 100% a crazy political "leftist", which I don't think is inherently bad, but what really sticks out to me is that this is applicable to everyone. If we say it's the best it can be.... we'll never work, and never know if it can actually be better.
“Utopia lies at the horizon.
When I draw nearer by two steps,
it retreats two steps.
If I proceed ten steps forward, it
swiftly slips ten steps ahead.
No matter how far I go, I can never reach it.
What, then, is the purpose of utopia?
It is to cause us to advance.”
