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Gifts for all occasions in the Galleria! Add your comments on this week's "What is the Deal?" column at Uncle Hiram's Bulletin Board. June 29, 2003 What is the Deal with Affirmative Action? By Jan A. Larson The United States Supreme Court handed down the decisions in the cases involving the admission policies of the University of Michigan last week. By the time you read this, much will have been written and said about these decisions. In a column I wrote earlier this year, I made the prediction that the Michigan undergraduate admissions policy would be overturned. The only thing surprising about the Supreme Court's decision on this issue was that it was not unanimous. It is hard to imagine that even the most liberal of interpretations of the 14th amendment could justify Michigan's points-based undergraduate admissions policy, but yet three of our esteemed justices came to that very conclusion. I did not specifically address the admissions policy of Michigan's law school, but I will admit that I expected it to be overturned as well. So here we have it, affirmative action, that is race-based preference, lives on. Advocates say that until the day that America is truly a "racially blind" nation, we must have preferential treatment for some groups. I will counter by stating that until the day that preferential treatment ends, we will never be a racially blind nation. The African-American population, at least the so-called "leaders" of the African-American population, claim that blacks are continually being victimized by institutional racism and the legacy of slavery. I have news for these leaders. Slavery ended 140 years ago. Every person that was involved with slavery in any way, slave, slave owner or slave trader is dead! Blaming the failures of black America on slavery simply doesn't cut it anymore. As some might say, "that dog don't hunt." There certainly was institutional racism in America, but that ended 40 years ago. There are now numerous laws on the books that effectively eliminate the "institutional racism" that is often a convenient excuse for failure. I will not go so far as to say that there is no racism in America today, but that racism comes in many colors, not just white. The failures of a large portion of black America can be traced to one thing ... black America. As I mentioned in the previously referenced column, reason number one for the plight of a large portion of the African-American community is the unbelievable number of out-of-wedlock births. Nearly 70% of all African-American births are to single mothers. Many of those mothers are uneducated or under-educated. Uneducated or under-educated grandmothers ultimately rear many of these children in an environment of survival, not achievement. Children living in poverty being raised by a struggling, uneducated single parent or grandparent face long odds in obtaining an education and becoming productive members of American society. It may not take a village to raise a child, but having two parents and a stable home certainly helps. Meanwhile, so-called leaders such as Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, perpetuate the notion that the problems faced by inner-city blacks are somehow perpetuated by mainstream, i.e. white, America. In their world, the problems of the black community are laid at the feet of the white man trying to keep the black man down. The only way out, according to them, is more and more money going to more and more failed programs and more and more preferential treatment. Mainstream America, which I will offer includes not only whites, but Chinese-Americans, Japanese-Americans, Hispanics, Jews, Indians, Puerto Ricans, etc., etc., and yes, African-Americans, is not interested in helping those that will not help themselves. There are far, far too many African-Americans that have escaped or avoided the poverty and destructive lifestyles to become respected, productive members of society to believe that the circumstances of black America cannot be overcome. Until black America turns its collective back on those such as Jackson and Sharpton that would maintain the status quo, and looks to solve the problems that face them without counting on handouts and preferences from mainstream America, the cycle of despair and poverty will continue. At least a few will be able to get into the University of Michigan law school. -- Send feedback to the author. The "What is the Deal?" column will appears weekly on the Pie of Knowledge website. Guest submissions are welcome and encouraged. To submit an article to "What is the Deal?" click here. To subscribe to the "What is the Deal?" mailing list and receive early notification when a new column is available, click here. The Pie of Knowledge will never, ever divulge email addresses to any third party for any reason unless so ordered by a court of law. Contributions to the Pie of Knowledge are greatly appreciated. 
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