Just Us/Kwame Salter
The Strange Career of Affirmative Action
“The price of repression is greater than the cost of liberty. The degradation of men costs something both to the degraded and those who degrade.”
― W.E.B. Du Bois,
The bogus concept called ‘race’ has damn near destroyed this great country. From the instant the first Africans were kidnapped and forcibly brought to America, the bogus concept of “race“ has consumed us as a nation. It is mind boggling how a socio-political construct without any scientific basis became the basis for justifying and defending the ‘peculiar institution’ of American slavery. Additionally, this race-based philosophy was used to erect and reinforce a racial caste system both in the South and North of our country. For the record, I do believe that the only race we all belong to is the human race. According to geneticists, “All human beings are 99.9 percent identical in their genetic make-up. Differences in the remaining 0.1 hold important clues about the causes of diseases.”
Once the scientific lie had been allowed to flourish, politicians sought to pass laws justifying their despicable attitudes and behavior. To install race as a legitimate concept, proponents of racial superiority, like Hitler, used pseudo-science to “justify their treatment of Jews, disabled people and other minority groups.” Eugenics, a racist pseudoscience used by the Nazis, gained deep traction in America. While eugenics was revealed, exposed and discredited during the later parts of the 20th century, the damage was, unfortunately, done. Today, Americans, both Black and Caucasians, have internalized many of the outlandish claims of inferiority promulgated by racist so-called scientists. Too many Blacks have low self-esteem because of the damage done
by these so-called scientific studies. Even more distressing is that too many whites actually believe that Blacks are biologically and mentally inferior — regardless of their demonstrated competence.
Affirmative Action, one of President Lyndon B. Johnson's Great Society key pillars was intended “to improve opportunities for African Americans while civil rights legislation was dismantling the legal basis for discrimination.” It appeared as though the country was coming to grips with decades of state sponsored “racial” inequity. However, detractors and critics quickly labeled the push for Affirmative Action as ‘reverse racism.” Given the historical facts and current realities facing African Americans, the claim of reverse racism would have been laughable when juxtaposed with the facts. According to Ken Burns, the great documentarian, Louis Armstrong [ Pops] used to reply when asked “how’s it going?” he would respond with, “White man still on top!” In his stock response, he seemed to suggest that nothing substantial had changed — even with the installation of AA policies. What ‘Pops’ was saying is clear. In his mind, AA and other so-called progressive legislation was little more than eye wash or optics to give the impression of so-called racial progress. Was ‘Pops’ right? With the benefit of hindsight, I believe he was spot on. White men, in particular, have benefited from the AA initiatives in ways not contemplated.
For example, with the advent of AA, White males benefited in the following ways:
AA gave them the excuse that they were victims of an unfair employment process.
Their total household income increased as a result of their white wives and daughters being beneficiaries of AA practices
They never had to acknowledge/admit that they were bested by a minority or woman based on qualifications
Never needed to acknowledge the fact that they had [and still have] the benefit of ‘affirmative actions’ as white males in a systematically racist hiring system
The point I make is that AA for minorities and women was based on the built in systemic bias for White males as the preferred hire. While AA has been painted with a “Black Face,” the benefits, I repeat, of this initiative have not been restricted to just People of Color. As any reasonably intelligent person upon reviewing the facts and data will discover that there has been little more than ‘needle quiver’ when one analyzes progress of Blacks in terms of replacing Whites folks in jobs and positions. What we need to do as Americans is stop self-delusion. We must quit lying to ourselves. Yes, we have made progress. Yet, to truly move the needle towards full citizenship opportunities for all, we must try something different. We should introduce and apply the Truth and Reconciliation approach that Nelson Mandela used so effectively in post-apartheid South Africa. Once we acknowledge our past, we will no longer be a prisoner of the past.
The ultimate irony is that White males “can have their cake and eat it too!” A Black person, notwithstanding, credentials, qualifications and professional experience can be demeaned by simply being referred to as a DEI hire.