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■ In the three counties, the odds of completing cotlege in 2000, compared to Whites, was SS percent for Asians, half for African Americans, 38 percent for American Indians, and 33 percent for Latinos. ■ In the community conversations, participants were concerned about the messages underlying curriculum, and particularly how this, combined with unprepared teachers, may affect the self-esteem of children and their school achievement. They also expressed concems about the racially and culturally-based verbal harassment that children are subjected to at school. Somali and Middle Eastern respondents mentioned mistreatment based on appearance and clothing, and based on iarger socio- political deveiopments. Hr�nong pa�ticipants recounted being harassed about language. Besides the verk�al harassment, children of color also are socially excluded and experience a sense of rejection by their fellow classmates and feel singied out and treated unfairly by school administration. Finally, some teachers asstune low academic ability, which may become a self-fulfilling prophecy; while some Asian parents point to unreasonably high expectations %r their children. Responses to racism Responses to raciszn are as varied as the definitions of racism_ Mar�y residents in the three counties are comfortable speaking out against acts of racism. Axnong communities of color, responses to racism run the gamut from internalized seif-hatred and depression to acting in the same racist manner. ■ In our survey, 6� percent of people in the general sample say they feel "very" or "somewhat" comfortable about speaking up in defense of a victim of racisrn. ■ About one-fourth of Black/African-Americans (25%) and American indians (22%) say they have felt emotionally upset within the past 30 days as a result of how they were treated based on their race. Lower propottions of Hmong (16%), Latinos (17%) and Whites (4%) report this experience. ■ In oux comxxaunity conversations, participants and key informants across all of the racial groups had much to share about responses to racism. All agreed that racisxn causes tnuch emotional, psychological and sgiritual damage, for individuals, fazz�ilies, and communities. This ernotional and spiritual harm can manifest itself as depression or as physical illness. One common response to encountering racism was simply embarrassment and having a sense of shame. Another common reaction was fear. For Latino immigrants, in particular, a response of fear can be related to their immigration status and their efforts to secure citizenship in the United States. ■ Several groups identified the intemalization of racism and a feeling of self-hatred as one of the rnost destructive responses to racism. Both the African-American and the American Indian conversations explored this topic in-depth. ,4n assessment ojracism irt 5 Jam�ary 2004 Dakota, Ramsey, ¢nd Washington counties