I enjoy a good civil debate, especially about a hot topic as this. I agree with you that we all have certain prejudices. I'm going to use that term instead of racism because I feel it better encompasses the element of human nature you are describing with racism being a subset of prejudices. We all develop a comfort zone based on the sum of our experiences. Not to say the stereotypes we apply to those whom we do not know personally are correct or fair, that is how we deal with the unknown. It is a ingrained human survival instinct to suspect that which we are not familiar. We can try to train out this instinct all we want, but in the end we only make ourselves vulnerable to those who would do us harm. I contend that a young black male would have similar apprehensions about a rural white town. "Am I going to be targeted because I am different?" Unfortunately, there is a track record to justify his fears. There is also a track record in urban environments to justify your example's fears. Would you feel comfortable walking down the streets of Baghdad without armor and air cover? You might be perfectly safe from 90% of the population. It is that small percentage you don't know about that causes you to be uncomfortable and react in a prejudiced manner.

I grew up in a suburban environment, but went to school where the urban and suburban mixed regularly. I live about 1 mile from an area that is widely regarded as dangerous and unsavory. I travel though it daily and don't worry about my safety because I am familar. When I lived in St Louis, I was exactly the opposite. I avoided similar areas because I was unfamiliar and advised to. I argue that most prejudices we have are from a lack of familiarity. I proposed that the solution to that problem is education.

With respect to your hiring example, I would agree that the ERAU grad would probably get hired all other things being equal. Again, we like what we are familar with. What you described isn't racism though, its a fraternity. Its the same reason there is a unspoken preference for military pilots. We are an inherently tribal species and make decisions accordingly.