Rhoda Bradshaw died last week.I first met Ms. Bradshaw at the beginning of my sophomore year in high school, over 25 years ago. She was an English teacher and the director of the Drama Club. Later, she co-chaired the local chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW), and served in NOW on both local and national diversity caucuses.
A few years after I graduated, when declining student enrollment and tax revenues forced the school system to make cuts, Ms. Bradshaw was laid off. She didn't have the advanced degree or the years of seniority to keep her job.
That was a shame, because Ms. Bradshaw had an extraordinary ability. She could motivate the children who most needed motivation. She taught remedial classes, and produced amazing results. Unfortunately, when the time came to reduce the workforce, the school system had no way of looking beyond the teachers' resumes, and the children suffered as a result.
The original purpose of Affirmative Action was to right past wrongs, particularly wrongs committed against African-Americans. The idea was that three hundred years of slavery and Jim Crow laws meant that African-Americans didn't have the opportunities that white Americans (or should I say "European-Americans") had, and something needed to be done to fix that. Now, after a generation of Affirmative Action programs, we've gotten bogged down in silly discussions over quotas and whether African-Americans now have those opportunities (they don't).
It's time for a change.
For starters, we should all be able to agree that by going beyond what's usually on the resume we can actually find people who are better qualified than those who, at first glance, might seem the best. And those companies, universities and other groups that create a system that takes this extra step will be better off for finding better people for the job or other position. They will find people who are more motivated and able to reach higher levels of achievement.
Conservatives should agree that under this system businesses and colleges could show that they are getting the best people. Liberals should agree such that a system would still benefit those groups who are currently underprivileged. And moderates should agree that it's about time the two sides agreed on something.
The trouble, of course, is that such a system requires that individuals be treated as individuals and not as members of some larger, and often irrelevant, group. As a result, it becomes more expensive and difficult to implement such a system. But is it more expensive in the long run? After all, if the result is that better people fill the positions available, they'll do a better job in those positions. Productivity will go up and profits will increase. In schools, more people from inner cities and poor rural areas will get the chance to improve their lives. Giving real hope to these people will reduce many of the problems caused by systemic poverty, including health care and violent crime.
And students who can benefit from teachers like Ms. Bradshaw will be able to get the education they need to succeed.
Copyright 2004, Dan Jacoby
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