The Lesser of Two Evils

There's been a lot of complaints in the last decade or so about reverse discrimination. Most of the complaining has coming from white Christian males who are upset because jobs (or scholarships) they felt they deserved (and in some cases did deserve) went to minorities. Being the type of person I am, I often wonder if those who are complaining loudest about this reverse discrimination have ever thought, "Gee, no wonder so many blacks seem to be angry/frustrated/resentful/hopeless/etc.! It's tough being discriminated against because of the color of your skin! And I've only been doing it for 46 years (at the most) and they've had to put up with this and much, much worse for more than 230 years. I need to make sure that me and my friends don't discriminate ever again." It's sad to say that I don't think too many have thought that way.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 technically and legally prohibited discrimination based on one's skin color and gender. Of course, it didn't actually stop that discrimination— no law prevents what it outlaws. It merely give those wronged legal redress for the damages done to them. But decades after the passage of the Civil Rights Act, there was still blatant discrimination. Feminists attempted to pass the Equal Rights Amentment in starting in 1972, the first time they actually got the amendment through both houses of Congress. But by the time the deadline for ratification by 3/4 of the state legislatures rolled around, only 35 states has ratified the amendment and therefore it was never enacted.

In response to the continued discrimination, affirmative action plans were put into place that were supposed to "level the playing field". Ideally, if two candidates were equally qualified and one was a minority, the minority would get the job. And even if there were less qualified minorities, as long as the lack of qualifications didn't prevent them from doing their job properly, they would be given the job. Since its inception, the affirmative action plans have been criticized as promoting reverse discrimination. And in some cases, they have.The University of Texas even removed their affirmative action program from the admission standards and their right to do so was upheld by the courts. (Although, just a few years later, the university reestablished its affirmative action admission policy voluntarily.) There are a few states who have banned affirmative action practices.

However, as the stories shown below demonstrate, racism and discrimination based on gender and skin color are still rampant in the US. Double standards still abound when hiring women and keeping them on in their positions. Blacks and other minorities are still routinely thought of as "less" than whites. Is it fair that minorities and women get an advantage over men? Nope. It's not. But the alternative is even worse. The "old boy" attitude is still so ingrained in the minds of so many that to get rid of affirmative action would lead to much more discrimination than to keep it in place. It is the lesser of two evils. And until attitudes change, there's gonna just have to be a little evil in the world.