Ask Auntie Pinko
October 16, 2003

Dear Auntie Pinko,

My family and I argue about affirmative action all the time. They always argue that affirmative action isn't fair when minorities receive tons of college scholarships and benefits while many white people don't. They always ask, "If there is a minority scholarship, why isn't there a Caucasian scholarship?"

I'm a hard-core Democrat that believes that affirmative action helps, but I can never come up with convincing information to argue my case. Can you give me some help answering this question for my parents?

Sincerely,

Rick
Anywhere, USA

Dear Rick,

I guess it may be time to revisit the affirmative action question. The very first question Auntie Pinko answered for Democratic Underground related to affirmative action (you might want to check Auntie's Archives for that answer) but it has been a while since we've visited this issue.

Your parents ask "If there is a minority scholarship, why isn't there a Caucasian scholarship?" and there is a simple answer: there are hundreds (heck, thousands!) of them. They are sponsored by Chambers of Commerce in majority white communities, American Legion and VFW Posts with mostly white membership, fraternal organizations comprised of white people, churches in denominations that are almost exclusively white (the neighborhood churches on Sunday morning are among the most segregated institutions in America!) and many other organizations. Their scholarships are aimed at residents of white communities, the children of overwhelmingly white memberships, high achievers in schools that are almost entirely white, etc. In addition, most American colleges and universities have a special affirmative action program that benefits white people highly disproportionately - it's called the 'legacy preference.'

The reason it's so hard for white people to see white 'affirmative action' is twofold:

• First, it has been around for so long (since before the Revolution, in fact,) and become so institutionalized in how we do business, who we elect to office, where we live, what businesses we patronize, etc., that it simply blends into the landscape; and

• Second, as a group that has been a majority of the population for so long, and has had so much control of the culture, social organization, political process, etc., white people have the incredible luxury of almost never having to think about race.

We take it for granted that we are entitled to buy a home anywhere we want, run for public office if we can afford to, obtain credit based entirely on our credit history and financial circumstances, get respect from local law enforcement and equitable treatment from the court system, go into a neighborhood coffee shop without feeling 'different,' etc.

Members of population groups who are easily recognizable by some physical difference from the white mainstream simply don't have those luxuries. They must think about their race, their religious faith, their physical challenge, or whatever the difference might be every single day. They know that for every 'uppity' person outside the mainstream who calls the system to account with great fanfare when they feel treated unfairly, there are plenty who are deprived of such redress even when they seek it, and literally millions more who are routinely denied opportunities, ignored, assumed to be less intelligent, less productive, less worthy of consideration, and who simply put up with such treatment as 'the way things are.'

For white people, the 'unfairness' of affirmative action, or minority preferences, or highly publicized discrimination suits, is only worthy of attention when it is brought to their attention, or when it affects them personally. The overwhelmingly vast majority of their time, they are free to forget about the skin color, religious practice, language, and the various physical qualities they share with rest of the group that controls the largest share of America's wealth assets, political power, social influence, media attention, etc. Because they personally may not feel wealthy or privileged, they do not perceive the privilege they enjoy simply by not having to be 'different.'

Comparatively few Americans who are obviously Caucasian, apparently Christian, fully able-bodied, fluent English speakers, ever feel an automatic need to worry about whether they are being lied to by the real estate agent, banker, or personnel officer about why their offer to purchase was rejected, their loan denied, or they didn't 'make the cut' for a second interview. Even with laws that add some disincentive for such exclusions and lies, they still occur all too often in the lives of most people of color, minority religion, physical disability, etc.

For every individual of minority status who benefits from affirmative action, there are thousands who are trapped in neglected, powerless neighborhoods unheard by City Hall, poorly educated in schools that must struggle for the most basic resources, routed into dead-end, low-wage jobs, targeted by 'special task forces' of law enforcement agencies, represented in the court system by overworked or incompetent attorneys. There are millions presumed guilty, presumed poor, presumed ignorant, presumed less competent, identified by their physical characteristics rather than their achievements, aspirations, or skills.

Auntie Pinko is not saying that white people never experience these things, Rick. On the contrary, white people from rural southern or Appalachian communities, from poor urban neighborhoods, and other social 'out groups' often experience something very similar. Yet their response has always baffled me. Instead of making common cause with the other groups affected by America's vulgar prejudices and historically-entrenched social discrimination, they often choose to blame them, scapegoat them, or regard them as inferior or deserving of their disregarded status.

We all do better when the least-regarded among us is afforded justice and equity, and our society is a better place for everyone to live when we work to overcome the effects of hundreds of years of prejudice and discrimination. Affirmative action, carefully implemented in the context of overall social justice for everyone affected by race, class, religion, etc., is an important part of that work. I doubt that any of this will change your parents' minds, Rick, but perhaps it can validate your own commitment to a better future for everyone's children. Thanks for asking Auntie Pinko!

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