| BUSH'S AFFIRMATIVE ACTION |
| Written by Maria Elena Salinas |
| Monday, January 27 2003 |
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| It's hard to believe that President Bush singlehandedly decided to personally come out against affirmative action. What was he thinking? Why would Bush make a public statement against a program that benefits minorities when he and his party are trying to attract the very group of voters that could be hurt by eliminating it? One of the most hotly debated issues among minorities was thrown into a Roman circus, unnecessarily.
This is one of those divisive issues that provokes heated debates, with strong and convincing arguments from both sides. It is a debate that carries political consequences, no matter which side you are on. President Bush himself dwelled on it for weeks before making a decision on whether or not his administration would even get involved in the case before the Supreme Court regarding the enrollment practices of the University of Michigan.
Yes, I know, I know -- he didn't say he is against racial diversity, just against racial quotas. As a matter of fact, he said it several times during his speech. "Quota" seems to be the bad word of the day. It's a word often used by those opposed to racial diversity to describe affirmative action. In the case of the University of Michigan, race is one of several factors used to determine who will ultimately be accepted -- a common practice in many, if not most, universities in the country.
Affirmative-action programs were created decades ago to secure equality not only in education but also in hiring practices and government contracts. They were created to consider not only race but also gender in an effort to reach that equality. They are not meant to reward unqualified candidates. Opponents call this reverse discrimination. They believe that people should be rewarded based solely on their abilities, not on their race. Sounds great, if we lived in an ideal world. But we don't.
Racism and discrimination are alive and kicking in this country. It's virtually impossible for a young black, Asian or Hispanic from a poor neighborhood to be expected to have the same advantages as a white from a well-to-do family. Minorities are still at the bottom of the socio-economic pile, and those who even make it to higher-education institutions do so as a result of extraordinary efforts.
I am not at all surprised by Bush's stand on the issue. He has always made it clear that he is against racial quotas. He eliminated affirmative action in schools while he was governor of Texas. One of the first things his brother Jeb did as governor of Florida was follow in his brother's footsteps in that regard. What does surprise me is that he publicly denounced it, even if he called it "quotas," even if he praised Martin Luther King's fight for equality a few days later.
According to The Washington Post, Mr. Bush met with a small group of close advisers to help him make the tough decision. Among them was National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, the highest-ranking African-American on his cabinet. She supposedly urged him to stand against affirmative action.
Ms. Rice was quick to come out and clarify, saying she believes that race should be taken into consideration in the university admission process. She herself benefited from such programs when she became the first African-American provost at Stanford University and subsequently helped other blacks to join the staff. Secretary of State Colin Powell has made known his disagreement with the president about this issue by publicly supporting affirmative-action programs.
If the administration believes that affirmative action is unconstitutional and unfair, it should work on finding ways to restructure it and improve it. But it can't have it both ways, saying it supports racial diversity and opposing affirmative action. If Mr. Bush wants to eliminate the programs that have become a symbol of equality in this country, he has to be willing to pay the political costs. |
