There's certainly room for that argument - I think the problem is that as it stands right now, the divide is too great to overcome without active intervention b

There's certainly room for that argument - I think the problem is that as it stands right now, the divide is too great to overcome without active intervention because the outcomes of white and black people are bifurcated. Thus, a large effort will need to be undertaken if the races are to reach opportunity parity. I think that the two solutions you posited, reducing the opportunity for active discrimination and providing affirmative action opportunities, are a big help - however some institutional reforms are also necessary, including (in my humble, foreign opinion) government investment in predominantly black schools and enterprises, and ending the drug war which disproportionately affects both the poor, and minorities. Once parity is reached I think these resources could be allocated on a purely economic basis, but until then I think that the US government has a moral obligation to resolve the problems that it created.