In 1866, Connecticut was the first state to ratify the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guaranteed equal protection for people of all races under the law and signaled the first real step toward racial equality in this country.
Yet more than a century later, inequality and racism persist. It may not be as blatant as it once was, but Cassis and others in Connecticut say the problems of the past linger in policies and attitudes, preventing true equality.
And some of the problems have gotten worse.
The state is still very segregated, maybe even more than it was in the past, Cassis said. Poverty and race divide the state by zip code, so that in Connecticut, "we live in two states."
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