Affirmative action attack uses guise of justice

By Frank Chapman & Fred Gaboury

This article was reprinted from the February 21, 1998 issue of the People's Weekly World. For subscription information see below. All rights reserved - may be used with PWW credits.

Rene Redwood, executive director of Americans for a Fair Chance, a Washington, D.C.-based coalition of six of the nation's most prominent civil rights legal groups, accused the right wing of insidious cunning in their efforts to reverse decades of civil rights gains.

"Despite impressive gains for women and minorities in the past 30 years, America is not yet a color-blind or gender- neutral society," said Redwood. "Dishonest elected officials are attempting to usurp the civil rights movement under the guise of advancing it."

Redwood said more than a quarter of the people voting for California's Proposition 209 thought they were voting for affirmative action. "The right wing promoters of Prop. 209 went so far as to use a commercial with Dr. King coming out against affirmative action," she said, "and withdrew it only after protest from the King family."

Affirmative action means anti-discrimination policies in employment or admission to college in a society that is not yet color blind or gender neutral.

Wage differentials based on race and sex is the most blatant example of the fact that corporate America uses racism and sexism in its employment practices.

In a study conducted by the Fair Employment Council of Greater Washington, of equally qualified Black and white applicants, job offers were made to 46.9 percent of white applicants and only 13 percent of African Americans.

In 16.7 percent of the instances in which both the white and African American applicants received offers, the white applicant was offered higher wages. White applicants were notified of job vacancies at a rate 48 percent greater than African American applicants.

Affirmative action programs are under attack in every branch of the federal government and in more than 20 states, a situation created by what Chicago civil rights attorney James Potter called a "chilling atmosphere created by a Supreme Court unwilling to admit that discrimination is still a national problem."

Potter said, "Where once we had a Supreme Court willing to correct social problems, now we have denial ... It's not necessary for the law to be changed, the change in attitude toward enforcement does the trick."

In Washington state the right wing is trying to duplicate Prop. 209 with Initiative 200. "They spent $380,000 to collect the 180,000 signatures they needed to put Initiative 200 on the ballot," said Kathleen Russell, campaign manager for No 200. "And more than half of it came from Ward Connerly," he of Prop. 209 fame.

Russell said success in the initiative effort came only after the Republican Party got formally involved. "They made a direct mailing to 154,000 registered Republicans, enclosing a petition." Steve Forbes, a GOP presidential candidate in 1996, signed a fund appeal for them.

Like Russell, Stewart Acuff, president of the Atlanta Central Labor Council, is neck deep in a battle to protect affirmative action programs. The Georgia legislature is considering legislation that is even more sweeping than called for in California.

"They would outlaw all affirmative action plans," he said, "whereas Prop. 209 dealt only with state institutions and employees."

Acuff sees affirmative action as a matter of solidarity. "We just can't move back on the question of racial justice because affirmative action still makes sense."