Panelists debate affirmative action at teach-in
Students express disappointment about ‘battle of words,’ lack of
information
By Ramona M. Ortega
At an affirmative action teach-in Thursday, students attending
said they expected to participate in a balanced discussion of the
issue but came away having heard only the same rhetoric again.
Although audience members expressed the need for a more solid
understanding of affirmative action, many students said they were
baffled by the stream of rhetoric surrounding the issue.
Most said they came to the teach-in without supporting one side
or the other, but they left still hungry for information and
disturbed by what they heard.
"I’m glad the teach-in took place. My expectations were higher,
but I was looking for clarity in regard to affirmative action,"
said Patricia Del Rio, an undeclared second-year student. "I was
disappointed that it became a battle of words. They never addressed
the issue of disparity of opportunities in low-income neighborhoods
and creating opportunities for everyone. I felt that the panel was
selling an agenda, and there was a lot of rude campaign rhetoric
but nothing based on factual information."
The teach-in was sponsored by the Civil Rights Project of the
Center for the Study of Popular Culture, and co-sponsored by both
the Bruin Republicans and Democrats. Despite heated debates
surrounding affirmative action issues, the 14-person panel faced a
number of empty chairs in Ackerman Grand Ballroom.
The Civil Rights Project, one of the sponsoring groups, is
campaigning for the California Civil Rights Initiative, which would
make it illegal in this state to consider race and gender in hiring
or admissions if passed in the 1996 elections.
Proponents of the initiative claim it is the "last step in the
civil rights movement."
"Discrimination should not be legal. Racial preferences are
illegal and (the initiative) is designed to fight this," said John
Hill, vice president and general counsel of the Civil Rights
Project.
Joe Gelman, campaign manager for the Civil Rights Initiative,
said affirmative action supporters are "Quota queens and
kings."
Emotions charged the teach-in.
"It was anything but a balanced panel. As far as generation,
gender, ethnically  there were no Latinos on the panel or
people that represent the full range of issues. They spoke strongly
against preferences but were not able to give any specific
remedies," said J. Jioni Palmer, a panel participant and political
action coordinator for the African Student Union.
The title of the initiative became a focal point of conflict.
Specifically, the word "civil" was questioned as being deceitful by
trying to equate civil with images of racial and gender
equality.
"The (initiative) is anything but civil. It seems to take away
the gains of the civil rights movement. This is supposed to be the
land of equal opportunity  while people of color are still
not getting equal education," said Chanee Franklin, a first-year
political science student. "I came here with no real opinion and
now I realize that I must be involved, because they really don’t
have an argument. In the future I would like to see specifics.
"Neither side said what would be taken away or protected. They
are keeping it vague so we don’t understand what we’re arguing
about, creating a climate of racial tension," she said.
A publication from the African Student Union’s political action
committee, The University at a Crossroads, calls the initiative a
"Jim Crow Initiative."
"We renamed this so-called Civil Rights initiative a name that
fits, one that it deserves. We name it the "Jim Crow Initiative"
because we know there’s nothing civil about it, for it embodies the
very ignorance and intolerance that stained the nation with the
laws of Jim Crow in our past," wrote Kendra Fox-Davis in the ASU
publication.
Tristen Sotomayor, president of the Bruin Democrats, said the
teach-in was important in opening up debate on the issue.
"I felt the teach-in was successful as an important first step
for more forums. It’s such an emotional issue and emotional
comments were made and at times the issue got lost, but the fact
that distinguished people came to speak is important," Sotomayor
said. "Our main concern is to educate the students, and we plan to
hold more forums in the future."