Posted on 05/01/2003 11:32:43 AM PDT by madfly
"We have to get beyond the point where we stop making excuses and presume black and Hispanic students just can't make it without affirmative action," Connerly said. "Affirmative action is terribly demoralizing." Affirmative action attracted attention recently when the U.S. Supreme Court reviewed two cases involving the University of Michigan's admissions standards.
Michigan, along with other universities around the nation, awards applicants "pluses" or "points" if they are members of "underrepresented" ethnic or racial backgrounds. Students also are rewarded if they can help create a "critical mass" of diverse students, according to the cases of Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger. Michigan officials contend it is important for students to learn in a diverse environment. Connerly, who is also a University of California Regent, said race-based diversity is not necessary for students to achieve a quality education, and white students can contribute to diversity as well. Race-based standards classify people into "five basic food groups" of "white, black, Hispanic, Asian, Native American," and "feed the very stereotypes people are trying to get beyond," he added. It is more appropriate to examine a student's socio-economic background and individual circumstances rather than race, Connerly said. He also predicted the Supreme Court would find the Michigan admissions standards unconstitutional. Damone Scott, an electrical engineering junior, disagreed with Connerly's lecture. "Racism is a reality whether we have affirmative action or not," Scott said. "Until something better comes along, taking it away is not a solution." The Young America's Foundation - a conservative youth student group - and the Associated students of ASU sponsored Connerly's visit. Want to be heard? Post your opinion in the forum below. Reach the reporter at lynh.bui@asu.edu.
Ward Connerly, American Civil Rights Institute chairman, claimed at a lecture on campus Wednesday that affirmative action is a form of racism and is immoral.
"Claimed"? It falls under the definition of the word "racism". Imagine a news article saying "George Bush today claimed that tax laws require citizens to send money to the IRS", "Al Gore claimed that 2+2=4"....
Michigan officials contend it is important for students to learn in a diverse environment.
Interesting contention. Maybe it's true, maybe not. (I'd like to see the research, and in what sense is "important" used here, "important" to what?)
Anyway, I'll assume they're right. The problem is that what does painstakingly gerrymandering the skin hues of students necessarily have to do with creating a "diverse environment"? If ten people in a room have similar skin hues, that's "not a diverse environment", but if they have more varied skin hues, it is? In other words: skin hue determines all. That's what Michigan's careerist bureacrats are saying.
What's so frustrating is that AA's defenders aren't actually saying anything over and above what we already know, which is-- "we want more black people & hispanics at this place". "It's important to have a diverse learning environment", when you parse it and break it down, doesn't convey any additional meaning or content than that. And what's worse is AA's defenders often don't realize it, they're so seduced by theories and terminology they think they're actually saying more than "we want blacks 'stead of whites" when they're not.
It is more appropriate to examine a student's socio-economic background and individual circumstances rather than race, Connerly said.
I have an idea, why not examine their test scores and academic record. Fancy that
"Racism is a reality whether we have affirmative action or not," Scott said.
True. But affirmative action is racism, in action, so why make it worse?
This is almost like saying "murders happen whether I kill this guy or not"
"Until something better comes along, taking it away is not a solution."
It depends what you think the "problem" is. If the problem is racism then taking away a racist state policy is certainly a solution, or partial solution, to that problem. If the problem is "too many damn whites / Asians at this place" then of course the solution may be different and this guy may be correct. And like he says, racism is a reality. He's living proof.
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