Affirmative action has more problems than solutions

‘ ‘ ‘ Student Government Board was unusually exciting a few weeks ago. ‘ ‘ ‘ Race, money and… ‘ ‘ ‘ Student Government Board was unusually exciting a few weeks ago. ‘ ‘ ‘ Race, money and politics. Aside from cars and alcohol, there is no more volatile mixture. Much has been said about whether or not we should use University-related funds to finance the United States Student Association, and these arguments need not be repeated: I have no desire to bore my readers in a column not about economics. ‘ ‘ ‘ However, very little has been said about the policy the USSA is trying to uphold ‘mdash; affirmative action ‘mdash;’ which is not a policy SGB should support. ‘ ‘ ‘ I know what you’re thinking: ‘racist white right-wing nut alert,’ and indeed it is hard to be too careful when discussing this sensitive topic. Affirmative action is sacrosanct to so many. It has noble aims. It means to compensate for our nation’s past barbarisms and current prejudices and tries to make things fair in a manner short of having black police officers attack white protesters on the streets of Selma. It is a good sentiment. But the method is wrong. ‘ ‘ ‘ The first problem is that the mere presence of affirmative action allows some to dismiss the very real accomplishments of minorities in society. If a black person works hard his entire life, gets an education and advances at a prestigious company by virtue of his own ability, talent and hard work, racists are able to dismiss his advancement as the result of special set-asides and discrimination, with the implication that this person could not have done it alone. ‘ ‘ ‘ In this manner, affirmative action does nothing to alleviate, and might even entrench, racist attitudes in this nation. If minorities advance with no outside help, then there can be no doubt or question that they have advanced based on their own merits. When this merit is recognized as such, a small chunk of the ugly facade of racism is broken ‘mdash; when somebody is your boss, it is hard to call him inferior because of his skin. He sure does a better job than you do. ‘ ‘ ‘ The second problem with affirmative action, especially in the realm of college admissions, is that it sets people up for failure. It is implicit in giving someone an advantage that that person is not as qualified as someone of a different race. Otherwise, the affirmative action would not be necessary, as the person would be admitted on qualification alone, and the entire question of race is wholly irrelevant. ‘ ‘ ‘ Finally, the central tenet of affirmative action ‘mdash; that we are compensating for past discrimination ‘mdash; leads to all sorts of difficult questions. Who gets these privileges?’ If past discrimination is a qualifier for present affirmative action, then the Irish, Poles, Germans, Jews, Catholics, Anabaptists and other previously aggrieved white people could qualify. Now, I realize discrimination was not as severe toward these groups as toward other racial minorities, but how do we quantify that difference? ‘ ‘ ‘ One could argue it isn’t fair to help some previously aggrieved groups and not others. It is easier to avoid the question altogether. ‘ ‘ ‘ This is not to say that the government should do nothing to help disadvantaged minorities. It’s just that the real solutions lie elsewhere. There should be rigid enforcement of anti-discrimination statutes, to ensure that everyone has an equal chance at success. Race and needs-blind policies in university admissions are a must. Instead of trying to get the under-qualified into universities, we should focus on making those individuals more qualified. This is done by improving secondary education, providing more extracurricular activities and making schools safe from crime. The government must focus on equal opportunity for all and make sure minorities are able to successfully compete for those opportunities. ‘ ‘ ‘ Though it means well, it is a mistake to encourage discrimination in the opposite direction in an attempt to expunge the discrimination of the past. ‘ ‘ ‘ E-mail Mark at kozthought@gmail.com.