Forum
Court rulings bring new challenges
NEW YORK ? The attacks on
affirmative action continue to be
sustained by the Supreme Court of
Uhc United States. These attacks
were first forecast 10 years ago
when it was evident that right-wing
political forces were not only
preparing to seize the White House,
but also were preparing to funda
mentally reshape the character of
the highest court in the nation.
Affirmative action had devel
oped historically as a systemic rem
edy to generations of past discrimi
nation. In particular, Afro- Ameri
cans and Hispanic Americans have
benefited in the job market from
effective affirmative action pro
grams and litigation. In addition,
white women, recognized as anoth
er group which has suffered from
{discrimination in the job market,
have been able to achieve remark
able advancement because of affir
mative action. Yet, at a time when
the vast majority of racial and eth-*
: nic persons, both male and female,
are still facing high unemployment
Trates and racist employment prac
tices, to legally dismantle the basis
*for affirmative action is morally
reprehensible.
The recent 5-to-4 decision by
the Supreme Court giving sanction
to legal challenges by white male
workers against affirmative action
was a devastating blow to the cause
~Jof justice. This decision came only
a week after another ruling by the
Supreme Court that made it easier
for employers to implement dis
criminatory promotion practices.
Linda Greenhouse, writing in The
New York Times , started, "The
actions show that former President
Ronald Reagan has largely accom
plished his goal of creating a con
servative Supreme Court majority
willing to reverse the Court's direc
tion on civil rights."
issues of race and empowerment.
For example, the Congress is now
very nervous about legislating com
prehensive economic sanctions
against South Africa at a time when
the whole world knows apartheid is
CIVIL RIGHTS JOURNAL
^By BENJAMtN CttAVtS JR.
Specifically, the Supreme Court
ruled that white firefighters in
Birmingham, Ala., are permitted to
challenge a previously court
approved affirmative action agree
ment which was intended to
increase the number of Afro- Ameri
cans hired and promoted in the local
fire department. This now opens
the door for all prior affirmative
action "consent decrees" between
courts and employers to be chal
lenged and overturned.
* We are clear that the attacks on
affirmative action are attacks on the
progress of the civil rights move
ment. The rights of Afro-Ameri
cans and other racial and ethnic
communities have been hard
fought. We must not allow these
gains to be decimated by the contin
uing racist backlash that is subtly
blowing throughout the nation.
Some Tegal strategists are now
saying that the only alternative now?
is to go back to Congress and to
clarify more explicitly legislative
intentions concerning affirmative
action. The problem is that the pre
sent Congress itself is in disarray x>n
getting" its strength from United
States and other overseas invest
ments. Therefore, it is unlikely that
the Congress has the present will to
enact legislation re-establishing the
grounds for affirmative action.
We believe that progress on
affirmative action can only be made
if there is a mass outcry in opposi
tion to these Supreme Court rulings.
Yet,- our outcry ^gust be coupled
with grassroots crtfanizing through
out the nation. History teaches us
that in the absence of the move
ment, i.e., th$ mobilizing and orga
nizing of millions of justice-seeking
persons around this and other civil
rights issues, even in the 1990s,
there will be no progress. Thus, the
rulings of the Supreme Court serve
as a challenge and as an opportunity
to stand up and get involved once
"again In a mariner that can make a
difference^- ?
Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. is execu
tive director of the Commission
for Racia.l Justice of the United
'Church of Christ^
Desecration of civil rights is real Issue
I . As the 25th anniversary of the
I signing of the Civil Rights Act
came and went, President Bush
was capitalizing on the always
Ipopular theme of patriotism and
[pushing for a constitutional
^amendment that would make it
i illegal to desecrate the American
flag.
The Civil Rights Act could
_ ,not eliminate segregation and dis
crimination; it simply made them
illegal. But with that stroke of the
pen on July 2, 1964, President
J-yridorTB. Johnson gave Afro
7 Americans, and others, tools with
which to begin chipping away at
, those two cornerstones of inequal
ity in this country, whose founda
j tion was built on our strong backs
, and still rests on our blood, sweat
and tears.
|
With those tools and leaders
like the Rev. Martin Luther King
Jr., we challenged the "system"
legally and slowly began to break
down some of the barriers of
inequality and injustice. But not
without a price - the ultimate
price for some.
I Today, many of us seem to
-Lhave forgotten. We are either
? unaware of what's happening,
j caught up in the "I've got mine,
tyou get yours" trap of false securi
ty, or we are afraid to challenge
^he system.
i But what about those civil
ights trailblazcrs? Were they
/raid? Certainly, the Rev. King
Vas not.
They were like Ernest
reene, one of the "Little Rock
Ine" Afro-American children
ito integrated Little Rock High
Jc hool. Mr. Greene said recently,
jrWe did not focus on fear. We felt
I we were doing the right thing."
The Supreme Court did the
i right thing when it ruled that
burning the American flag is not
illegal. But that body - the same
Court that ruled it legal to execute
children and mentally retarded
people - has been udily taking
back every right the Civil Rights
Act guaranteed.
still struggling to be free under the
Constitution as it is. We certainly
should not sit still while the Con
stitution is amended to abridge
freedom. Ironically, in Little Rock
AGAINST THE GRAIN
By ROOSEVELT WILSON
Mr. Greene said, M25~years~
ago was just the beginning/This is
the hard part now."
Today, except for a few voic
es, we Afro-Americans are silent
while under the guise of patrio
tism, this country is about to set
the most dangerous precedent in
its history.
We are about to amend the
Constitution of the United States
to take away a freedom guaran
teed under the First Amendment.
I cannot envision myself
burning an American flag, but for
some it is a means of expression,
and the First Amendment says
that Congress shall pass no law
abridging such freedom.
President Bush is well aware
of this and that is why he is lead- ~
ing the movement to have the
Constitution amended rather than
get Congress to deal with flag
desecration laws.
Freedom, at least America's
concept of it, is what makes ours
different from any other country
in the world, and the Constitution
is the sacred document that guar
antees it. Interpreting the Consti
tution is one thing; amending it
another.
If the Constitution is amended
to take away one freedom today,
which freedom will be taken
tomorrow?
As Afro-Americans we are
on July 4, an Afro-American man
attempted to burn a flag as a
means of protest and was attacked
and prevented from doing so by a
group of whites.
We should be wise enough to
recognize the danger of tampering
with our Constitution and we
should be strong enough to stand
tall and fight this amendment for
those to follow us, as the civil
rights pioneers fought the system
for us.
As the Rev. Jesse Jackson
said, something is terribly wrong
when we will protect one's free
dom to burn a cross, yet take
away one's freedom to bum a flag:
Taking a cue from Mr.
Greene, we must not focus on
fear. We must do the right thing.
We must call and write letters
to our lawmakers. We must take
to the streets, if necessary, to com
bat this movement.
This one is too important to
sit out. Either we take action to
stop this atrocity, or by our inac
tion we help to heap it yt>on our
selves.
Desecration of the flag is not
the issue. The real issue is the des
ecration of our civil rights.
Roosevelt Wilson is working
with the Chronicle this summer
as the T. Thomas Fortune fel
low.
Pastor's rebuttal , From Page A4
been offered mon^y to sell this
property. This is not true. No pro
. posal is on the table in this regard.
We arc planning t<x relocate in the
distant future, but those plans arc
^ not to have moved before the con
| struction of a jail according to the
present timetable of the commis
1
I
m ?
sioners. Wc ask the support of the
entire community in our efforts to
protect the heritage, tradition,
integrity and values of the Liberty
Patterson community.
The Rev. James A. French is the
pastor of Goler Memorial AME
Zion Church on Patterson
Avenue.
The Chronicle invites people
throughout the community who
ha^e an opinion to express to
submit columns for consideration
for publication in this space.
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