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From: butch@drutx.UUCP (FreemanS)
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: Re: Discrimination
Message-ID: <2896@drutx.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 28-May-85 18:04:05 EDT
Article-I.D.: drutx.2896
Posted: Tue May 28 18:04:05 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 30-May-85 02:35:28 EDT
References: <354@iham1.UUCP> <25954@lanl.ARPA>
Distribution: net
Organization: AT&T Information Systems Laboratories, Denver
Lines: 33

After hearing some of the idiotic replies on this topic I felt that
I had to add my two cents.  I've been hearing people say that they
shouldn't be held responsible for something that happened 200 years
ago.  I get the feeling that most of the ones saying this are in
fact white males who have probably felt no discrimination.  
When slavery ended in 1865, blacks and women still did not have many
rights for years.  Black's didn't really have a chance at many high
paying jobs that white males had until the 1970's.  Before the civil
rights bill of 1965, many of the Jim Crow law's were in affect in
many states.  

One cannot right all the affects of injustice, oppression, poverty, and
second class citizenship with the stroke of a pen in 1965.  What
affirmative action does is right some of the wrongs of the past by
giving people a chance to pull themselves up.  What this program
does is allows the oppressed group the ablility to catch up so that
all people regardless of race or gender will all have a equal shot
at realizing all their dreams.

Some of the people on the net cannot fathom why they should have to pay
for something that happened long ago.  Maybe it is ignorance that
they can't understand why the effects of 200 years of slavery and   
a 100 years of oppression weren't  remedied 20 years ago in
1965.  Wake up people, the effects of such injustice will linger far
longer than just a few short years.  

I just don't understand why people are against something that is
helping others out.  Why is it so bad to do everything we can to
right terrible wrongs.  Some individuals think that just because
they are so fortunate that somehow if you aren't then it's your
fault.   Why is it that if a woman or minority gets a promotion,
it somehow is not based upon their qualifications.  Let's try to be
a little bit more open-minded and understanding toward other people.