Page 12
August 23, 2017
New Prices
Effective
April 1, 2017
O PINION
Martin
Cleaning
Service
Carpet & Upholstery
Cleaning
Residential &
Commercial Services
Minimum Service CHG.
$50.00
A small distance/travel
charge may be applied
CARPET CLEANING
2 Cleaning Areas or more
$30.00 each Area
Pre-Spray Traffic Areas
(Includes: 1 small Hallway)
1 Cleaning Area (only)
$50.00
Includes Pre-Spray Traffic Area
(Hallway Extra)
Stairs (12-16 stairs - With
Other Services) : $30.00
Area/Oriental Rugs:
$25.00 Minimum
Area/Oriental Rugs (Wool) :
$40.00 Minimum
Heavily Soiled Area:
$10.00 each area
(Requiring Extensive Pre-Spraying)
Affirmative Action: Dissecting Rhetoric from Reality
The attack on
equality of
education
M arc h. M orial
In a perfect America
founded and operating
on colorblind meri-
tocracy, admission to
selective institutions
of higher learning, boardrooms of
Fortune 500 companies and access
to federal contracts would be de-
termined solely by ability, skill and
talent, never having to take into
consideration race or gender—and
certainly never having to take into
consideration a moral, national im-
perative to redress wrongs rooted
in a long history of slavery, sex-
ism, structural racism and preju-
dice. But as we all know, that is not
the America we call home.
We live in an America that has
(at some points more fervently
than others), perpetually strived
for the elusive ideals of freedom,
liberty and justice—for all.
But as we collectively labor
through the mud of inequality and
the residue of injustice that dispro-
portionately effects communities
of color and women, it is at best
cynical and at worst callous that
the very federal agency charged
with addressing the impact of dis-
crimination on historically disad-
by
UPHOLSTERY
CLEANING
Sofa: $69.00
Loveseat: $49.00
Sectional: $109 - $139
Chair or Recliner:
$25.00 - $49.00
Throw Pillows (With
Other Services) : $5.00
ADDITIONAL
SERVICES
• Auto/Boat/RV Cleaning
• Deodorizing & Pet
Odor Treatment
• Spot & Stain
Removal Service
• Scotchguard Protection
• Minor Water Damage
Services
SEE CURRENT FLYER
FOR ADDITIONAL
PRICES & SERVICES
Call for Appointment
(503) 281-3949
vantaged groups is now, under the
direction of Attorney General Jeff
Sessions, preparing to attack those
laws, policies and guidelines
set in place to end and correct
the effects of a discrimination
and “improve the employ-
ment or educational opportu-
nities of members of minori-
ty groups and women.”
According to a leaked
memo, the Department of
Justice is planning to redirect re-
sources from its civil rights divi-
sion to investigate and sue universi-
ties that use “intentional race-based
discrimination” in their admissions
process because of its purported
negative effects on Asian-Amer-
ican applicants. But let’s be clear,
this is an attack on equality and
education for marginalized groups.
This brazen, transparent, coun-
terproductive assault on affirma-
tive action, coupled with other
proposed initiatives, would seal
the door of opportunity shut for
millions of Americans. The Trump
administration has proposed slash-
ing the Department of Educa-
tion’s funding by over $9 billion;
withholding much needed federal
money from high-poverty public
schools; and reducing funding for
federal work-study and Pell Grants,
making it harder for lower income
and Black and Hispanic students to
afford higher education.
In a nation where education is
the most effective tool most of us
have to climb the American lad-
der of success, and is practically
synonymous with opportunity and
achievement, the executive branch
of our government appears driven
to keep those who can least afford
it away from a quality education at
all phases of schooling.
There are a lot of myths out
there about affirmative action.
The most prevalent one—the one
that fires up the aggrieved Trump
base—is that hordes of Black and
Brown applicants are taking away
opportunities rightfully earned by
better-qualified white applicants.
The truth is, according to the latest
data, the primary beneficiaries of
affirmative action have been white
women. And though the adminis-
tration insists it is motivated by a
sense of fairness, no attention is be-
ing paid to the growing advantage
socioeconomic and legacy status
play in college admissions.
Like race or gender, many se-
lective universities consider an ap-
plicant’s legacy status as a factor
in the admissions process, which
puts students from marginalized,
low-income and underrepresented
communities at a distinct disadvan-
tage. A 2011 Chronicle of Higher
Education study found that a legacy
connection gave an applicant a 23.3
percentage point advantage over a
non-legacy applicant. And appli-
cants whose parent attended the
school gained an average advantage
close to 50 percentage points.
That our universities and work-
places review candidates through
a race- and/or gender-conscious
lens is an acknowledgement of the
outsized role racism and sexism
currently plays and has historically
played in our nation’s history. The
Supreme Court has ruled—time
and again—that schools, in partic-
ular, have the right and “compel-
ling interest” to use race in a limit-
ed way to achieve a diverse student
body. The goal is not to disadvan-
tage any group, but to recognize
and attempt to remedy centuries of
injustice.
The National Urban League un-
equivocally condemns any effort
by the Department of Justice to
undermine the still necessary role
of affirmative action in college ad-
missions, taking us back to a time
when African Americans, women
and other marginalized groups did
not have equal and fair access to
higher education or employment.
I look forward to the day when
a man or woman will neither be
preferred nor penalized based on
gender, color or socioeconomic
class. Perhaps affirmative action,
as a lasting solution, is complex
and imperfect, but so is the nation
we call home.
Marc H. Morial is president and
chief executive officer of the Na-
tional Urban League.