Regents pass racist policy

The University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents today passed a racist policy that would give greater consideration to a person’s skin color and heritage, however distant, than his or her intelligence and academic performance.

Though race can be a consideration in college admittance per a 1978 U.S. Supreme Court ruling, under Wisconsin law, college acceptance cannot be "based upon race, religion, national origin of U.S. citizens or sex shall ever be allowed in the admission of students."

Granted there is a difference in semantics here: “based upon” and “consideration” are two very different terms. However, the Regents have now placed race as a factor of consideration that allows colleges to base their acceptance letters upon race.

The practice is racist. This country has seen enough racism guised as affirmative action. Marquette University criminal justice graduates can’t find policing jobs because they are white and the Milwaukee police force, in part because of a policy passed in the early 1980s, prefers black applicants with the notion of “GED encouraged” to apply.

Initially, affirmative action was focused on remedying discriminative actions against blacks in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This task has long been accomplished.

Now, affirmative action has deviated from its original intent. Today, affirmative action encompasses women and any group that claims to be a minority. Preferential treatment is given to nonwhite men, putting them and the enforcer of the racist practice at a disadvantage. It’s not only “reverse discrimination” (used loosely), but it hurts the enforcer of the policy in that they are not getting the best and top candidates they could. And for what? So women and minorities have equal representation in the work place?

If you’re qualified to hold the position, you’ll be represented in the work place. If you’re not qualified, but black or Latino or gay or whatever, you’re dangerous and putting many other qualified people (and your employer) at a disadvantage.

University of Wisconsin-Madison Chancellor John Wiley said in the Journal Sentinel: "I don't know how you could have lived through the past century - maybe if you were asleep in a cave - and say that race doesn't matter."

Race matters. What doesn’t matter is race is a consideration for jobs or college or friends. We’ve come a long way, Wiley. University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Chancellor Carlos Santiago is one example. To find others, look around at Milwaukee’s diverse workplace to find countless examples of minority business owners, political minority leaders and counter-evidence to the need for more racist policies like the Regents have enacted today.