It’s a great moment for leading and following – we’ve installed Mr. Obama in The Job, and now he clearly expects us to lead our own lives responsibly and for the common good.

One of my favorite inaugural moments was during Rev. Joseph Lowry’s benediction, when he quoted the Civil Rights ‘rainbow’ saying, about black, brown, yellow and red … and white. Did you catch our part in the drama? “White will get it right.”

Let our teachable time commence.

I was intrigued by a CNN poll from the Dr. King holiday. http://www.edition.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/01/19/king.poll/index.html They asked “Has Dr. King’s dream been realized?” In March of 2008, 34% of black people and 35% of white people agreed. This month, 69% of African Americans concurred, while agreement among white people moved up to 46%.

CNN’s analysis focused on the doubling of the affirmative from black folks. That truly is a wonderful measure of a promise kept. But what explains the current 23-point gap between black and white respondents?

Remarkably, this study quantifies that, for our part as white people, we see that we have a long way to go in realizing Dr. King’s dream.
• We understand that we need to stereotype and judge black people less.
• We can welcome them and learn with them more.
• We can lead and follow among them with more emotional intelligence.
As this new inter-racial landscape of unfolds, each one of us is personally responsible for assessing our own mind and heart. Historians will note 2009 as the time when white Americans came to grips with the price we ourselves have paid for the legacy of racism.

So the Inauguration and the CNN study remind us that we have a lot to learn about relating across racial lines. Our nation needs us white folks to step into this teachable time.

That’s how I see it. How about you?