It's been slowly eroding away, but I'd have to say that the real turning point in the U.S. was when we elected a black president. Republican governors even refused to shake his hand when he visited.
Even if the open windows of science at first make us shiver after the cozy indoor warmth of traditional humanizing myths, in the end the fresh air brings vigor, and the great spaces have a splendor of their own - Bertrand Russell
