Temat: Affirmative Action, Political Correctness, Multiculturalism

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
What is Affirmative Action?
Affirmative action programs seek to remedy past discrimination against minorities, women, and others by increasing the recruitment, promotion, retention, and on-the-job training opportunities in employment and by removing barriers to admission to educational institutions. Focusing in particular on education and jobs, affirmative action policies required that active measures be taken to ensure that blacks and other minorities enjoyed the same opportunities for promotions, salary increases, career advancement, school admissions, scholarships, and financial aid that had been the nearly exclusive province of whites.
From the outset, affirmative action was envisioned as a temporary remedy that would end once there was a "level playing field" for all Americans.
How is this done?
Affirmative action strategies include expanding the pool of job or admission applicants through recruitment strategies which reach outside of traditional channels, such as the posting of job notices in places where women and minorities are more likely to see them. In employment, affirmative action programs also have sought to increase on-the-job training opportunities that are related to occupational mobility within workplaces.
Quota systems, preferential treatment for minority applicants to institutions of higher education.

TIMELINE:
• The actual phrase "affirmative action" was first used in President Lyndon Johnson's 1965 Executive Order 11246 which requires federal contractors to "take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin."
• Fragment of Johnson’s speech about the concept of affirmative action:
You do not wipe away the scars of centuries by saying: 'now, you are free to go where you want, do as you desire, and choose the leaders you please.' You do not take a man who for years has been hobbled by chains, liberate him, bring him to the starting line of a race, saying, 'you are free to compete with all the others,' and still justly believe you have been completely fair . . . This is the next and more profound stage of the battle for civil rights. We seek not just freedom but opportunity—not just legal equity but human ability—not just equality as a right and a theory, but equality as a fact and as a result."
• In 1967, Johnson expanded the Executive Order to include affirmative action requirements to benefit women.
• U.S. Supreme Court decisions in the 1970's and 1980's reshaped the parameters of affirmative action programs.
• In Bakke v. University of California, the Supreme Court ruled against a medical school admissions affirmative action program that reserved 16 out of 100 places for minority students. The Court, however, also found that "race conscious" admissions policies that took race into account as one of many factors were constitutional.
• In the 80’s the Supreme Court justices were divided in their opinions in affirmative action cases but universities and employers were cautiously backing out of straightforward AA policies.
• Just recently in a landmark 2003 case involving the University of Michigan’s affirmative action policies the Supreme Court decisively upheld the right of affirmative action in higher education. The Court ruled that although affirmative action was no longer justified as a way of redressing past oppression and injustice, it promoted a "compelling state interest" in diversity at all levels of society.
CRITICISM
Mostly from the ranks of conservative politicians and political commentators but also from some members of minorities as well (Richard Rodriguez, Chicano writer & gay rights activist or Prof. Shelby Steele, African-American academic whom we had the opportunity of meeting last year when he visited the ASC).
Arguments:
• Affirmative action is "reverse discrimination" (Help! We’re using the tools of the oppressors!)
• Affirmative action violates the principle of merit (you don’t get in b/c you’re good, but because you’re black)
• Affirmative action harms its intended beneficiaries (Shelby Steele’s argument – aa stigmatizes its intended beneficiaries by implying that they are less competent and can't compete as equals with others)
• Affirmative action is socially divisive and leads to a Balkanized society
• Affirmative action is economically inefficient (someone needs to do the dirty work anyway)
• Affirmative action does not reach those who need it most – not all members of minorities are disadvantaged and not all the disadvantaged are members of minorities
• Affirmative action at the college entry level is way too late – what really counts is primary schooling
With some of these critiques in mind, variations of Affirmative Action have been suggested to reach those who are truly disadvantaged:class-based affirmative action, geographically based AA (so called percentage plans). Busing is also a strategy aimed at “leveling the playing field” when the kids are younger.
This section is in part based on Roberta Ann Johnson's "Affirmative Action Policy in the United States: Its Impact on Women," Policy and Politics 18:2 (1990), 77-90.
You can also check out this really informative website: http://www-personal.umich.edu/~eandersn/biblio.htm#Pro
Or this one for a timeline of all the Supreme Court decisions: http://www.infoplease.com/spot/affirmativetimeline1.html

POLITICAL CORRECTNESS
Definition & origins
The term “political correctness” is almost always used pejoratively, mostly by those who oppose what they consider to be included in its definition. The origins of the term are also somewhat muddy, but it can be said for sure that it rose to broad usage in the 1980s – judging from who and what forces were in power at the time, it must be taken into account that political correctness is a term popularized and defined by those who claim it is repulsive and brings about the death of “our civilization”.
Here are some encyclopedic definitions:
"marked by or adhering to a typically progressive orthodoxy on issues involving esp. race, gender, sexual affinity, or ecology. Abbr.: P.C." Random House
"conforming or adhering to what is regarded as orthodox liberal opinion on matters of sexuality, race, etc.: usually used disparagingly to connote dogmatism, excessive sensitivity to minority causes, etc." Webster's New World College
“Conforming to a prevailing body of liberal opinion, esp. in avoiding language, behaviour, etc., which might conceivably be regarded as discriminatory or pejorative to racial or cultural minorities or as reflecting implicit assumptions." Oxford Encyclopeadia English
I found one relatively positive definition:
“ideology that espouses showing sensitivity, tolerance, and respect for another's race, gender, sexual preference, nationality, religion, age, physical handicap, or other situation, especially if it differs from one's own; proponents avoid making derogatory, prejudicial, or stereotypical remarks directed at or against other people's views or situations.” Encyclopedia Britannica

However, it must be kept in mind that it is practically impossible to find a person who would voluntarily call him/herself a “proponent of political correctness”. The term would probably be used in a heated debate as an accusation against someone who objects to the use of insulting language .
IMPLEMENTATION:
In terms of actual implementation the debate revolved mostly around the introduction of “campus hate speech codes” in the early 90s. These codes, in general, prohibit (on campus) certain kinds of behavior which would be permissible off campus, mostly speech or conduct that creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive educational environment. Some ban behavior that intentionally inflicts emotional distress. Still others outlaw general harassment and threats. Court rulings have prohibited public (state-run) colleges and universities from enacting codes that restrict the constitutional right to free speech based on content. Private institutions, in contrast, are not subject to these decisions.
CRITICISM:
Probably one of the most criticized concepts around.
Most critiques are based on the assumption that PC infringes upon the First Amendment’s guarantee of freedom of speech.
Political correctness is, of course, one of the favorite butts of jokes, there exists and entire culture of “translating” certain texts into pc language – for example the Politically Correct Bedtime Stories book by James Finn Garner, numerous “dictionaries of political correctness”.
Part of what it is to understand the meaning of "PC" is to be familiar with satirical portrayals of political correctness, and to understand them as such.
For example, in a satirical example of so-called PC speech, the sentence "The fireman put a ladder up against the tree, climbed it, and rescued the cat" might look like this:
The firefighter (who happened to be male, but could just as easily have been female) abridged the rights of the cat to determine for itself where it wanted to walk, climb, or rest, and inflicted his own value judgments in determining that it needed to be "rescued" from its chosen perch. In callous disregard for the well-being of the environment, and this one tree in particular, he thrust the disabled-unfriendly means of ascent known as a "ladder" carelessly up against the tree, marring its bark, and unfeelingly climbed it, unconcerned how his display of physical prowess might injure the self-esteem of those differently abled. He kidnapped and unjustly restrained the innocent animal with the intention of returning it to the person who claimed to "own" the naturally free animal, but it immediately fled his grasp, having withstood more insult and injury than it could bear.


DEFENSE:
There aren’t many people willing to stick up for political correctness. No wonder, since the term was not invented by its supporters. But there are lots of people who do want to stick up for equality. PC has become a term of abuse directed at those who seek to both extend equality and express it in their every daily lives. It is also used to deride just about anything conservatives either don't agree with or simply don't like. In fact its remit has become so wide it is virtually meaningless; an excuse for sloppy thinking aimed at anything which embraces or enhances diversity or, worse still, an excuse for simply not thinking at all.

MULTICULTURALISM
General definition: multiculturalism is a social and political movement and position that holds differences between individuals and groups to be a potential source of strength and renewal rather than of strife. It values the diverse perspectives people develop and maintain through varieties of experience and background stemming from racial, ethnic, gender, sexual orientation and/or class differences in our society. It strives to uphold the ideals of equality, equity and freedom on which the United States is based, and includes respect for individuals and groups as a principle fundamental to the success and growth of our country.
Multiculturalism assumes ethnic identities are fundamental to self-concept and individuals prefer to retain cultural heritages - only when a person feels secure in their cultural identity can they feel generous and tolerant toward other cultures.
Historically, "multiculturalism" came into wide public use during the early 1980s in the context of public school curriculum reform and “the canon debate”. Specifically, it was noticed that the content of classes in history, literature, social studies, and other areas reflected a Eurocentric bias – that is most of the works assigned in literature classes were written by “white dead European men”. History was taught from a perspective of the Europeans – “discovering America” etc. This material absence of other cultures was interpreted as a value judgment that reinforced unhealthy ethnocentric and even racist attitudes.
What followed (often reluctantly) were changes in school and college curricula which reflected the real make up of the American society and the different cultural traditions which united to form it.
An important concept which developed at the time was:
Multicultural Education
Definition from the mission statement of the National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME):
Multicultural education is a philosophical concept built on the ideals of freedom, justice, equality, equity, and human dignity as acknowledged in various documents, such as the U.S. Declaration of Independence, constitutions of South Africa and the United States, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations. It affirms our need to prepare student for their responsibilities in an interdependent world. It recognizes the role schools can play in developing the attitudes and values necessary for a democratic society. It values cultural differences and affirms the pluralism that students, their communities, and teachers reflect. It challenges all forms of discrimination in schools and society through the promotion of democratic principles of social justice.
Multicultural education is a process that permeates all aspects of school practices, policies and organization as a means to ensure the highest levels of academic achievement for all students. It helps students develop a positive self-concept by providing knowledge about the histories, cultures, and contributions of diverse groups. It prepares all students to work actively toward structural equality in organizations and institutions by providing the knowledge, dispositions, and skills for the redistribution of power and income among diverse groups. Thus, school curriculum must directly address issues of racism, sexism, classism, linguicism, ablism, ageism, heterosexism, religious intolerance, and xenophobia.
Multicultural education advocates the belief that students and their life histories and experiences should be placed at the center of the teaching and learning process and that pedagogy should occur in a context that is familiar to students and that addresses multiple ways of thinking. In addition, teachers and students must critically analyze oppression and power relations in their communities, society and the world.
(check them out at http://name.org)