LOL
LOL, there’s something wrong with this post!
Look…is the guy afraid of ALL black people or is he just afraid to be in a crowd of black people, there IS a difference.
I’m not afraid of anybody, okay especially because of their skin color. I love black folks, brown, red, white and/or blue, no matter. BUT I’m also not stupid! There is a certain street in my town that I wouldn’t walk down at night. Not because I think all the people that live there are bad. That’s friggin stupid, but I know there are some (very small %) that would love to take their frustration/hatred/racist whatever you want to call it! out on my white ass. okay
Being scared, doesn’t make you a racist, maybe ignorant, unless you allow that fear to manifest itself into prejudiced behavior.
anyway, I’m not gonna beat this horse to death, just suffice it to say in regards to the OP…maybe but not necessarily.
Peace
Your friend is not a racist. As you point out, he has simply had such limited personal contact with blacks and influenced so much by other factors that it’s natural to feel afraid. Too often, even in today’s supposed enlightened society, only the mean underbelly of society is portrayed and/or represented in the media. This seems to be especially true for minorities. There is no news in people going quietly about their daily business.
As a black woman, I do not believe I would feel very comfortable in many predominantly white areas where I know racial violence is a problem or a possibility even though my social circle includes people of many racial and ethnic groups, including whites.
Racism is not about being unfamiliar with an ethnic group or feeling some anxiety when you find yourself among people unlike yourself. Racism is believing that some kinds of people are somehow less valuable as human beings - or maybe even less human - than your kind of people are. Racism can, but does not have to, devolve into hate. You can have prejudicial views about an ethnic group without being racist and without hate.
If your friend is questioning his feelings, that is the first step toward enlightenment. Hopefully, he’ll be able to work his way through them and be able to feel more comfortable the next time he visits Atlanta.
I don’t think your friend is afraid of black people. I think your friend is afraid of poor people.
I am white, and I live in a nearly 100% white city, and there are (white) areas into which I won’t go alone.
Most of the black people in this city are African refugees and asylum-seekers, and the African “ghetto” is one of the inner city places where I feel most safe - I am not in the least bit intimidated by anyone there.
However, my experience in the southside of Chicago was very scary indeed. The people who intimidated me there were not intimidating because they were black, but because they were part of a ghettoized, poverty-stricken underclass. Add the inflammatory effect of the media, and you’ve got a situation where in certain areas there is some risk, but the perception of that risk is even higher.
I’m guessing that if your friend had a black teacher, professor, doctor, lawyer, friend, or relative, then your friend wouldn’t be scared of them.
I’d say not racist, and I’m black. Lack of exposure to X (for various values of X) makes the first few encounters scary. The first few times I went into Chinatown alone, I was somewhat intimidated. And particularly if you seem to be the only Y (which can be race, gender, sexual orientation, religion).
My thought is, as other people have mentioned, he needs more exposure, in smaller groups.
[bandanman]Holy Shit! How’d I end up in jail with all these black criminals? I’m ascairt![/bandanman]
I’m afraid of Americans.
I’m afraid of one particular American, and he’s white (so’s his house).
Well fine. See if I ever lick you again. 
Have you met Karp2381?
One can be a racist & also afraid of black people. Or one can just be a racist. Or one can be afraid of black people, or white people or americans (maybe Iraq people are like that?)
e.g. Like if one comes from a white city like Carmel, California & you’re real young & your folks explain that the reason black people are like that is because they have some skin condition & they have to put on lotion & that makes them black & you might want to avoid them so you don’t catch it, then you might be afraid of black people, but not racist, if you catch my drift.
[YODAFIED]The path to the dark side fear is. …[/Y]
So this isn’t a complete hijack your friend probably isn’t racist but needs more exposure to people different than himself. If your friend isn’t racist it shouldn’t be difficult for him to get used to non-white people. We’re all away of it but not all of us are as sensitive. Phoenix is a fairly racially mixed city (though considerably less so when you get toward north Scottdsale) but I rarely think about it. I was keenly aware of it when I went to the midwest this summer, driving through Chicago and parts of Indiana.
OTOH if your friend is a racists deep inside exposure to other ethnic groups may just bring it out. 
Biggirl, thanks for the insight. I didn’t get it, but now I do. So, being in prison means that I’m “ascairt” of the black man? I don’t think so. I’m scared of nuclear war, I’m scared of STD’s, and I’m scared of the many things that we face everyday, But I’m NOT scared of them. I am however, cautious, when I see a grouping outside a store, or any public venue that would put my wallet in jeopardy. Go figure. Racist? OK. I can live with that. But I shouldn’t have to.
Stan Jones, Montana’s Libertarian candidate for the last Senate race, suddenly jumped into my mind.
I’m not a racist, but I think I might be a “culturist.”
I’ve recently undergone a [$5 term alert] paradigm shift [/$5 term alert] with regards to race and American society. For me, it’s not about skin color, heritage, sexual persuasion, religion, etc., but about what (sub)culture a person chooses to adopt. I don’t care what color skin you have, when you dress like a gangsta and act like a badass, I’m going to be on guard around you. I don’t care what skin color you have, but when you dress well and act politely, I’m going to feel comfortable around you.
I like this thread… Sorry I didn’t see it sooner…
I am in no way racist… I know many non caucasian people, and I get along with them well… I grew up in a very mixed community…
but I have had expiriances that naturally form a prejudice in my head.
I will only give one being that it relates to the OP.
maybe your friend had something happen to him sometime by a black person.
I remember a few years back… about 4 I think… I was driving through a bad part of NJ, on the way home from my girlfriends house… It was a summer night so I had my windows down, and a car pulled up next to me.
The guy in the cra started screaming at me about how I was a white devil, I killed his grandparents, he was going to get out of the car and kill me… yadda yadda ydaa…
we were stuck at a light with no one esle around… the problem is that the street I was on has 8 lights in a row about 50 yards apart from each other…
So I ran the light, he pulled up next to me again(my window was up by now) but I could still hear him…
he continued to follow me…
Picture a scared little white 20 year old, by himself driving about 80 in a 25… being followed through orange, nj… (or east orange)
not fun…
I drove all the way to a police station in my home town, and started beeping my horn… he just drove past me, but he was behind me through back roads for a good 10 minutes…
For that reason alone… I will be prejudice for the rest of my life…
I have plenty of other reasons to be prejudice… but I don’t have another hour to type… I am not racist… I have friends with all different backgrounds… but I do tend to pre judge people, and they need to prove themselves to me… I wish it were not like that, but it is.
Yeah, you’re right. I should be suspicious of all white people because of David Duke.