We have not been able to close the book on the Civil War in the wake of Confederate flag waving and racism still rampant in all sections of the nation. Nor will the chapter on Affirmative Action be concluded until we finally empathize with those of color and gender. In fact, another chapter on Affirmative Action must be drafted for unskilled workers who must be given every opportunity to better their lot. 

There has always been Affirmative Action for the privilege; for it is seldom what you know as whom you know. The loudest critics of giving a helping hand to those less endowed are the beneficiaries of a liberal government extending a helping hand through the G.I. Bill for education, veteran bonus points on civil service tests and VA loans for homes and businesses. Yet they see no evil in bankers lending uncollectable billions to foreign countries while denying the underwriting of mortgages at affordable rates for our young married couples, particularly those of minorities.

If it is accepted practice for universities to recruit athletes; they should be allowed to recruit minorities in order to shape their campus in the image of America’s civil rights. Of course, there are the elitists as well as the racist and the conservatives among minorities who do not believe in diversity. This trend is reaching alarming levels in the guise of school vouchers in order to preserve a monolithic consciousness in their children just as the wealthy do.

Unions and corporations are notorious for subjective hiring practices to retain the old boy’s club. Fortunately, this is precisely why there is the Constitution to safeguard against those consciously or subconsciously who take steps to undermine a commonwealth that hinges on an on-going practice to take corrective measures in behalf of justice. It is one thing to argue against compensatory awards to descendants of slaves and quite another not to acknowledge an obligation to correct the lingering damage of slavery. Nor is it justified to argue that it is sufficient that women’s rights are now accepted and therefore unnecessary to route out male-chauvinism and sexual abuse, or shortchange Title IX.

Descendants of European immigrants who still believe that descendants of immigrants of color are no more disadvantaged than whites are incapable of perceiving the strata of power in education, politics, and commerce. With American culture going down the tubes, it is more important than ever to see to it that higher education is subject to favoring the disadvantaged relative to variables that clearly impeded the intellectual potential of the candidate.

There is nothing degrading about colleges offering or mandating remedial courses for the disadvantaged to follow through on admissions, what with funding for public education still but a cursory overture to the disadvantaged child, particularly in rural and urban schools. Until this nation musters up a serious commitment to public education for all. Universities, not unlike Michigan, will continue Affirmative Action as a stopgap. However, a universal system of admissions should be adopted across the country, rather than leaving it to chance criteria of individual universities and colleges:

■   First and foremost is racial and gender profiling must be taken into account to reflect the changing complexion of the general population; but does not mean automatic admissions.

■   Family background and learning facilities at the home carry weight in evaluating the difficulty level of scholastic achievement of the candidate.

■   Location and quality of the student’s school experience should be considered for its learning and enrichment ambience.

■   Character analysis in relation to the depth of civic orientation and sensitivity to artistic and intellectual pursuits.

■   Willingness of candidate to undergo remediation in areas of weakness.

■   Willingness of candidate to join a campus activity that plays to his/ her strength.

■   Willingness of candidate to take on part time campus work to offset tuition grant.

■   SAT score must be considered holistically in relation to the student’s entire grade and extra-curricular compilation.

■   Community activity — including helping the household, such as minding younger siblings — helps in evaluating responsibility.

■   Assess the extent and depth of recreational habits.


 Of course, universities always reserve the right — quotas in a sense predicated on scholarship — to limit recruitment in major fields requiring intensive advanced studies, provided there is offered a minimal contingency of probationary admissions.So, too, in the field of labor, every effort must be made to offer in-service programs on management and advanced skills for the willing employee.

 Copyright © 2001 Richard R. Kennedy All rights reserved. Revised: December 2, 2003