Until we have eliminated inequities along the lines of racial status, affirmative action is just and necessary.
I write this
as a white male for whom doors have been opened from my birth. Access to great
schools, support if I ever faltered, and all of my basic needs being met. I got
into college because of race – my white race – that gave me an unfair advantage
in the game of standardized testing, AP classes etc.
It is a sad
day for equity, a huge loss for justice when our supreme court says that
leveling the playing field is now against the rules. It is a loss for
under-represented, minoritized communities. But it is a loss for all of us. We
lose out when students who have faced closed doors since birth are asked to play
on an “equal” playing field with people like me, for whom the doors were always
open. When one of those students who is destined to be a brilliant engineer, a
stellar lawyer, or a climate change leader is denied admission to college because
of the “equal” playing field (e.g. one without affirmative action), we all
lose.
Let us not
lose hope brothers and sisters. These assaults on women’s bodies and affirmative
action by a court with a perverted sense of justice should give us added
momentum to work together to make sure that their gavel is drowned out by the
symphony of our voices singing freedom songs as we work toward equity and
justice. Let that gavel be muted by our loud, boisterous and loving efforts to build The
Beloved Community.
I call to mind Cornel West’s wisdom: “Justice is love expressed in public.”
That’s the gavel I choose to honor, listen to, and ground my actions today.
Well said, Anthony. We all must continue the fight.
ReplyDeleteYour argument is valid, as a white male; however, the point that AA (Affirmative Action) is dead is a progressive talking point. The SCOTUS ruled in favor of the plantiff(s), who were in fact Asian Americans, that had been denied access because of their race. The ruling is that Colleges will not be able to exclude ANY race, if they meet scholastic criteria; ie., no longer check a race box. This is a win for all. - Carl Behnke
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ReplyDeleteAnthony, Thank you for using your power and privilege to advance equity.
As for Affirmative Action being dead, (not a progressive talking point), because AA has historically benefitted cis, white women over other underrepresented communities, perhaps there will be unity to instate a policy that actually creates equity. Love will triumph over hate.
Legislation like Affirmative Action and the civil Rights amendment, gay marriage, gay rights social security, Medicaid Medicare, etc. all came from the heart and soul of human beings who wanted to make change, to do what was right and take care of each other. Unfortunately they all got handed off to a government that has no heart and no soul. It is a bureaucracy that it's only interested in getting the next vote. Speaking only for myself, once something has become legislation I tend to think it is handled and I can let go of it. Thanks for reminding me it is my responsibility keep these things alive and with their original intent. Mark G
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