A response to Brian Lewis' "Which Path to define affirmative action."
Do not fear. Missouri's Civil Rights Initiative still conjures images of Martin Luther King Jr. and an integrated society. Instead of voter rights and an "end to segregated restaurants, public restrooms, water fountains and swimming pools" it will be citizen's rights and equality. It will be an end to segregated selections for universities and jobs and discrimination by separating people into groups, qualified simply by their skin color.
As to the majority complaining about being victimized by the minority, have you ever heard of "tyranny of the minority?" Its one of the things the Founders hoped to protect against.
When a certain group of people gets a special priviledge based on something so fundamentally unfair as skin color, it tends to generate some disaffection, pushing already parted people even farther.
The only fair way to level the playing field is to base the system on merit. I'm not saying that it doesn't lower some groups back down due to other problems before the university or the job. Affirmative action is simply the incorrect way of fixing our problems.
AA discriminates against one group, the majority, in favor of another based only on skin color. "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." There's my image of Mr. King.
AA is also incorrect for minorities. It sets up a system where quotas must be filled no matter about merit. So what does that teach the minorities? That its okay to "just get by" or do alright instead of pushing them, and the majority, to do exceptional work. And why? They will be guaranteed a spot in college or a spot in a job.
Affirmative Action simply does not do what its supposed to do, which is create equality. Integrate our society by fixing our problems; by ending discrimination, not sustaining it.
The second paragraph is a little vague for those that have not read the other story, so I will explain myself, plus its an excellent point, if I do say so myself (and I do). Lewis writes,
"Still, the complaint that scholarships and affirmative-action programs such as this one victimize and discriminate against people who aren't minorities rings hollow to me. If the definition of discrimination is stretched to include such programs, and I believe that's a stretch, it still pales in comparison to the discrimination that minorities experienced for the first two centuries of American history."
I point out in the second paragraph that the Founders wanted to prevent tyranny of the minority. Basically, tyranny of the minority is what it sounds like, its a few people, due to certain rules or privelege of power who force the rest of the people into doing what they want, at the majority's expense. A quick scan of Google on this topic will turn up anything from the minority in the Senate pushing a filibuster to Christian lawyers trying to "legislate morality." There is something intrinsically wrong about letting a few people or a group (smaller than the majority) dictate what everyone else should do. I will at this point say that the Founders also wanted to protect against tyranny of the majority, which could be exampled by the treatment of black people before the civil rights era (Segregation, poor schools and equipment, etc).
As I say in the letter, it is fundamentally wrong to place some above others, majority or not. It was wrong for people to keep the minority pushed down before, and it's wrong for the minority to do it to the majority. I also acknowledge that there are problems that are keeping minorities held back such as poor schools, bad neighborhoods, etc. The right way to fix this is not to hold up a group of people (and thus hold another down), but to FIX the problems that cause this. Fix the schools, patrol the neighborhood or create helpful programs for children. I do not claim to know how to fix it or even the complexities of these problems. What I do know, what we all know deep inside, is that its wrong to lift some above others in a place where law is supposed to see us all the same. I added the King comment at this point. I do not believe that Martin Luther King would approve of these programs and would readily point out that they create inequality.
Minorities would suffer under this program as well. Instead of studying hard and working hard, all they have to do is be reminded (again) of their skin color and get a free pass into a university or a job. What does that do to create excellence in our citizens? The majority now resents someone being elevated above them for no good reason (yes. No Good Reason). The minority doesn't have to earn anything. Is this really the system we want?
Mr. Lewis says that he doesnt believe that these programs actually work to benefit minorities and hurt the majority. A family member of mine worked at a business that sent around a memo saying that it was impossible for anyone other than minorities to be promoted above mid management point. Very fair for those that worked for a long time and had the experience necessary to earn their promotion. I'm speaking of all the employees who deserved this, not simply my family.
Say no to Affirmative Action, which is to say Legal Discrimination. Think back to your days in school. How fair is it for authority to play favorites? Did you not work just as hard, or did you slack because you were a favorite?
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