Daily Kos
by dmitcha
Thu Jul 23, 2009 at 09:36:06 PM PDT
After a week of watching the full frontal race-carding of Republican senators in the Sotomayor confirmation hearings, I have decided that it is not the election of Barack Obama that the history books will mark as the end of the U.S. racial divisions as we know it. Instead, it will be these few weeks of entitled, privileged white men deciding to document and promote an "All-Race, All-the-Time" agenda to shut down this nomination the only way they know how. And it is not working. And their heads are exploding. Not just because the fish are swimming around the tried-and-true race bait...but perhaps because they truly cannot fathom that this Latina actually is wise. And capable. Or, worse, WISER. And MORE capable.
My friend has coined the term "Sotomayor Dissonance Syndrome," or SDS, for this inability of the privileged to accept an historical "other" as a peer or superior. It's nothing new to us (or many of you). But it is remarkably, refreshingly new to watch it play out in full public view, beyond the privacy of the locker room, dining hall or board room. And imagine how good it will feel to finally see this tactic lose. AGAIN. In the same 12-month period. Let's skip the jump and talk about it.
dmitcha's diary :: ::
I got a link today on a list-serv to what I consider to be an ill-advised, ill-informed opinions piece from the New York Times about affirmative action and Sotomayor (Race in 2028). It flashed me back to my college stairwells, having endless arguments with students about policies they knew nothing about but were sure were secretly helping me and hurting their friends. Some of you know right now what I am talking about.
Before I go into more detail about affirmative action and why today's NYT piece was so anachronistic and ridiculous and uninformed in my view...let me add one more remarkable and refreshing thing. For all of you rich or not rich, wildly UNentitled white men that I have dialogued with and read and followed since social media made it possible to know that you exist - this diary is not about you. In fact, it is in part a hat tip to you. Because mountains have moved in reading your words and your stories and your sense of self as part of the progressive community in the past two years plus of Obama-locity. Who knew you were out there in such droves? Some of you know right know who and what I am talking about. (Tipping the rest of my hat to BlackKos, Jack and Jill Politics and Derrick at RENWL for more mountain moving!)
So now, I'd like to delve a bit into affirmative action, hoping to offer some foundation for reasoned discussion or private thought. This is not a legal opinion, just more information than many people I have encountered know about the affirmative action approach.
WHAT IS AFFIRMATIVE ACTION? It's actually a catch-all phrase. It concerns federal, state and local government, and other institutional efforts, to redress past discrimination and/or effect increased or equal opportunities for historically underrepresented groups (women, people of color, the disabled, etc.). So it is not actually a single defined program; instead, it is an approach to hiring, admissions, promotions, etc. that institutions define for themselves, unless they are under the mandates of a federal consent decree.
It's important to note that affirmative action does not currently assist gay Americans and civil rights laws do not yet legally protect them from discrimination.
Full Blog Post: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/7/24/757113/-Sotomayor,-Affirmative-Action-and-Dissonancepoll
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