Regressed?
Obama has had that level of security throughout his campaign.
I am sure Jesse Jackson had far more in his first presidential run.
It is, IMO, a great sign of progress in how far that we have come that a Black man can win a party's nomination. No one has ever burned a cross in my front yard or threatened me or my loved ones because of my race. (I did happen to get fired once along with 5 of the 6 total black guys who worked in a department of about 200 folks, but frankly, that was the choice of one bad seed IMO under a corporate mandate to cut heads --- not proof of rampant racism.)
Frankly, in racism terms, as old folks raised with racist values die, America becomes less and less racist. Like Michelle Obama, I too am proud of the progress our country has made on racial issues. We just have some regions that we knew would lag behind a bit, because racism is a little more deeply seated there. I don't think that is a huge cause of concern.
I think the next thing we need to do as a country is start breaking down the racism expressed against Hispanics and Native Americans as well as readjusting our financial focus to help poor folks of all ages --- not just poor black folks.
(For the record, I am half Black and half White and have no Native American or Mexican blood. I guess you could say, I have "half of a horse in this race" --- which is to say no horse at all...)