The skanner., June 26, 2013, Page 5, Image 5

Opinion
Deep Racial Gulf on Affirmative Action
I
n the months leading up to this week’s
Supreme Court decision on affirmative
action, a public opinion poll by ABC
News and the Washington Post showed that
76 percent of Americans oppose affirmative
action in college admissions. However, a
poll conducted by the Public Religion
Research Institute showed that 68 percent of
Americans favor the principles behind affir-
mative action.
How do Americans really feel about affir-
mative action? The short answer is that it
depends on how the question is asked.
The ABC/Washington Post question,
asked June 5-9, was posed this way: “Over-
all, do you support or oppose allowing
universities to consider applicants’ race as a
factor in deciding which students to admit?”
Of those responding, 76 percent opposed,
22 percent voiced support and 2 percent
were undecided.
Public Religion Research Institute, which
conducted a poll May 15-19, phrased its
question differently: “In order to make up
for past discrimination, do you favor or
oppose programs which make special
efforts to help blacks and other minorities
get ahead?”
More than two-thirds of the respondents –
68 percent – favored such efforts, 24 per-
cent opposed, 6 percent were unsure and 2
percent provided other replies.
Note the wording of the questions. The
ABC/Washington Post question provided
no context for evaluating affirmative action
admissions, only whether respondents sup-
port or oppose using race as a factor. On the
other hand, the Public Religion Research
Institute approach placed the issue within
the context of “past discrimination” and
using “special efforts” to help people of
color get ahead.
An NBC/Wall Street Journal poll, con-
ducted May 30-June 2, showed Americans
evenly divided on the issue.
Respondents were asked to choose
between two statements: A) Affirmative
action programs are still needed to counter-
act the effects of discrimination against
minorities, and are a good idea as long as
T HE C URRY
R EPORT
George E.
Curry
there are no rigid quotas and B) Affirmative
action programs have gone too far in favor-
ing minorities, and should be ended because
they unfairly discriminate against whites.
In that poll, 45 percent of the respondents
said affirmative action programs are still
needed to counteract the effects of discrim-
er 11 percent of Blacks feel affirmative
action should continue, but did not feel as
strongly about it. Among Hispanics, 29 per-
cent were in that category and 14 percent of
Whites.
When supporters – strong and not as
strong – are added together, 82 percent of
African Americans want to retain affirma-
tive action, compared to 68 percent of
Hispanics and 34 percent of Whites.
When you add the two categories of those
wanting to abolish affirmative action, a
majority of Whites – 56 percent – support
such a move, compared to 7 percent of
African Americans and 24 percent of His-
panics.
A CNN/ORC poll, conducted June 11-13,
That same poll showed how differently Blacks
and Whites view the proper role of government
ination against people of color. But the
same margin – 45 percent – said they feel
the programs have gone too far and should
be ended because they unfairly discriminate
against Whites.
asked the question: Do you approve or dis-
approve of affirmative action programs at
college and law schools that give racial
preferences to minority applicants?
The reference to “racial preferences” is a
How do Americans really feel about affirmative
action? The short answer is that it depends on
how the question is asked
A closer examination of the numbers
show a deep racial divide. For example, 71
percent of African Americans strongly
believe affirmative action programs are still
needed, compared to only 20 percent of
Whites and 39 percent of Hispanics. Anoth-
loaded term unlikely to elicit a favorable
response. In this case, 68 percent of respon-
dents said they disapprove of affirmative
action as it was defined, 29 percent
approved and 3 percent expressed no opin-
ion.
Affirmative action should be viewed in
light of overall racial attitudes in America.
As we approach the 50th anniversary of
the March on Washington for Jobs and
Freedom, people of color and Whites have
closely aligned views on whether Dr. King’s
dream of equality has been fulfilled.
In the CNN/ORC poll conducted Jan. 14-
15, respondents were asked: “Martin Luther
King gave his famous ‘I Have a Dream
Speech’ at a civil rights march in Washing-
ton in 1963. In your view, do you think the
U.S. has fulfilled the vision King outlined in
that speech, or don’t you think so?”
According to the poll, 51 percent of
Whites in the U.S. believe Dr. King’s vision
has been fulfilled; 49 percent of non-Whites
subscribe to that view. Unfortunately, the
poll does not separate the Black responses.
In an Aug. 4-7, 2011 USA/Gallup Poll, 55
percent of Black respondents said they
believe relations between Blacks and
Whites will always be a problem, compared
to 44 percent for Whites, with 2 percent
unsure.
That same poll showed how differently
Blacks and Whites view the proper role of
government.
When asked about the role government
should play in trying to improve the social
and economic position of Blacks and other
people of color, 59 percent of Blacks said
the government should play a major role, 32
percent said a minor role, 8 percent said no
role and 1 percent was unsure. Among
Whites, only 19 percent said the govern-
ment should play a major role, 50 percent
said a minor role, 30 percent said no role
and 1 percent was unsure.
George E. Curry, former editor-in-chief of
Emerge magazine, is editor-in-chief of the
National Newspaper Publishers Associa-
tion News Service (NNPA.) He is a keynote
speaker, moderator, and media coach.
Curry can be reached through his Web site,
www.georgecurry.com. You can also follow
him at www.twitter.com/currygeorge and
George E. Curry Fan Page on Facebook.
Week on the Web
Letters to
the Editor
Gender Equality
Dear Editor:
I am writing in response to The Skanner’s
editorial entitled “Controversy Underscores
Why Portland Needs a Sustainable Equity
Network” which highlights the need to contin-
ue raising awareness about the pervasive
equity issues still present in our community. I
could not agree more with this sentiment but
am troubled by the fact that issues of gender
equity are consistently downplayed. While I
was not present at the Quartet gathering, sex-
ism was at the heart of the comments of Baruti
Artharee directed towards Commissioner
Smith. Despite the role that gender played in
this incident, the City of Portland’s Office of
Equity and Human Rights mission states that
it is “starting with issues of race and disabili-
ty.” This incident clearly illustrates the need
for all of us in our community and the City of
Portland to rethink how it prioritizes equity
issues.
Regards,
Elizabeth Nye
Executive Director, Girls Inc. of NW Oregon
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June 26, 2013 The Portland Skanner Page 5