To a reactionary, affirmative action represents everything that is wrong about the federal government today, because it gives “cuts in line” to lazy, feckless, grasping minorities who don’t in any way deserve them, and punishes hard-working white Christian men, the bedrock of this country. Reactionaries view affirmative action and its first cousin, political correctness, as direct affronts to themselves and their way of life. As a result, affirmative action has always been very, very controversial, and there is no reason to believe that will change in the foreseeable future.
Personally, I think it is a mistake to view affirmative action as a monolith. Some programs can have significant social benefits even after all these years, but others lack any reasonable justification in either policy or history. Here is my analysis of three such programs:
- MINORITY AND FEMALE SET-ASIDES IN PUBLIC CONTRACTS: These drive up the cost of public services by enriching minority contractors who may not have experienced discrimination in the past. The focus on contractors rather than employees practically guarantees that the benefits of the program will inure primarily to people who are already relatively prosperous. Affirmative action programs typically work best when they create opportunities instead of granting prizes; public contracts are a prize. No one wins here except a few people who probably don’t need help, anyway.
- AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN COLLEGE ADMISSIONS: Objections to affirmative action in college admissions typically assume that there is some sort of unquestioned meritocratic ladder among universities, and that the failure to attend a school consistent with your ranking is a problem for the rest of your life. Neither of those statements is true; furthermore, admissions are an opportunity, not a prize. I accept, as the Supreme Court has in the past, that maintaining a diversity of cultures and views among the student body is an interest which justifies a degree of affirmative action. However, diversity and race are not completely synonymous, so race should only be used as a tie-breaker in the admissions process.
- AFFIRMATIVE ACTION IN PUBLIC EMPLOYMENT: Employment is more of a prize than an opportunity, which presents potential problems. On the other hand, there are some situations in which race is directly connected with effectiveness in the job. Do you really think that African-Americans would be as willing to talk to a white cop as a black one? Didn’t think so. As long as that connection exists, it makes perfect sense to try to hire African-Americans over white people.