The equal opportunity strategy
The major barrier to racial equality today is not racial bias or discrimination but poverty- related conditions that keep many members of minority groups from becoming literate and employable, and prevent them from moving into the American mainstream. Only when government provides the material prerequisites for a decent life -- including quality early education for everyone -- does equality of opportunity exist. The most promising way to achieve racial equality is by taking additional measures to provide an equal opportunity to everyone, regardless of race.
What Should be Done?
Abandon race-based preferences and provide expanded public support for those who are disadvantaged regardless of race, such as additional assistance for poor, single mothers. Take immediate measures to improve public schools so kids who grow up in low-income neighborhoods have the same opportunity to succeed that other kids have. Rather than perpetuating racial preferences in their admissions policies, America's colleges and universities should take an active part in bolstering educational programs at the primary and secondary level, so all children have a fair start. Expand race-neutral programs that make a difference for poor people, including job skills training, comprehensive health care legislation, anti-crime efforts, and drug abuse prevention.
Arguments For This Approach
Racial discrimination doesn't account for most of the inequities in American life today. The largest factor is that many people of all races lack the resources they need to move ahead. The main beneficiaries of affirmative action programs are middle-class minorities who do not need preferential treatment or special forms of public assistance. In a nation committed to equal treatment under the law, government has an obligation to help all individuals become self-reliant, regardless of their race. Equality of opportunity requires that the government take measures to help people deal with the problems associated with poverty. Assistance should be provided according to need, not on the basis of race. Deficient schools are the main reason some young people -- including many minority kids -- experience difficulty entering the economic mainstream.
Arguments Against This Approach
Racial minorities still need and deserve special consideration because of the obstacles they have experienced. It is not sufficient to promise a new round of anti-poverty efforts. Racial minorities need specially tailored remedies. Most government anti-poverty efforts make the poor more dependent on government, thus undermining the sense of self-sufficiency needed to move into the middle class. It is unrealistic to think that the best way to reduce racial inequality is to mount a broad attack on poverty. The problem of poverty may be unresolvable, but much can be done to achieve racial equity. There is little public support for expanded anti-poverty efforts like welfare.
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