The Surest Path to Equal Rights

Last night, during the Oscar telecast, Barbra Streisand said that while it was nice that this year was the "Year of the Woman", in which they celebrated women in film, she looked forward to the day when such tributes would not be necessary because women would be such a part of Hollywood's power structure that they would not be judged by their gender but by their ability and contributions to the industry.

The same can be said of racial equality. We should all look forward to the day when affirmative action programs are not necessary because all people will be judged upon their abilities and contributions rather than their skin color. The question becomes, how will we know when we are there?

The answer lies in part in what we hope to achieve with affirmative action. Some believe it should be used as a guarantee against on-going racial injustice. In other words as a means of ensuring fairness from this day forward. With that I can agree. There is no room for discrimination based on race. Others feel it should be used to make up for the injustices of the past, to make up for lost time. This is a bit more problematical in that it ex post facto penalizes some who have committed no crime and rewards some who have suffered no injustice. Even more difficult to accept are the arguments for lowering standards to assure that minorities are proportionally represented in all areas of society.

While a noble cause, the latter sets back the day when the ultimate goal of true color blindness can be achieved by breeding resentment not only among whites who feel they have been unfairly denied in the name of racial equality, but also among those minority members who have succeeded upon their own merits but are viewed as succeeding instead due to preferential policies.

Yes, government intervention has been necessary to wipe out institutionalized discrimination, but government can never make one learn, teach one morals, or instill independence. That is the individual's responsibility. We must all look at ourselves for the inner moral fiber to be successful members of society.

I do not intend to paint with a broad brush, as if all members of the minority are waiting for a government hand- out, or lacking personal will or morality. Nor do I claim that no one has benefited from government programs in the manner intended. However, if the detrimental societal impact of government programs outweigh the benefits, then we need to review these programs and overhaul them (eliminate them if necessary) to assure the greatest societal good.

It is essential that questioning any of these programs does not constitute racism in and of itself. Certainly, there are those who favor ridding ourselves of these programs for racist reasons, but that does not mean that all, or even most of, those favoring elimination or curtailment do so for anything less than hopes for a better tomorrow for all.