"Race" Runs the World

Where did this need for separation and conflict begin? Race has always been around, yes; it is visibly obvious that humans vary in skin color. But where did the specificity of values, determination of worthiness, even formed stereotypes even come from? It seems that the human soul seems to crave some sick need for separation and therefore the easiest thing to attack is a permanent, lifelong difference that we share with someone of the same race.
"The biological criteria used to determine the "difference" in sex simply do not hold when applied to "race." Yet we carelessly use language in a way as to will this sense of natural difference into our formulations," (Gates 5). It has come to the point that someone born into a particular race is now born with judgments and assumptions instilled in their minds due to merely the pigment of their skin. In certain disagreement Gates writes, "Lest we misunderstand the naturally determining role of race, Taine concludes that it is "no simple spring, but a kind of lake, a deep reservoir wherein other springs has, for a multitude of centuries, discharged their several streams,"" (3). It was not always this way though. Before the multitude of centuries occurred, people had to choose to treat a person not of the same color a different way. Gates article causes my mind to go over and over what it could have been that started all of these different views and opinions of one another. What I've come up with so far in my critical thinking is there is some type of drive of competition. We are advancing beings, we push ourselves to move forward and become better, become greater. We love the feeling of a race. As a cross country runner in high school, I can understand this feeling. There's nothing like running along side your competition, continually passing one by one after you thought you were so far away, leading up to the finish line and finally breaking loose with everything you've got to pass just those last couple people for a better time. This feeling is in all of us, whether its fulfilled by being 1st in running, 1st in a business, 1st in military, 1st in a school bee at the age of 6; this need to be the best at something drives humans to race continually, breaks are necessary, but the race never ends, only breaks, and we've made up the rules as we go.