Legislators Take “Affirmative” Action

Yesterday, Missouri House members in support of Affirmative Action held a press conference in Jefferson City to express their opposition of an anti-Affirmative Action ballot initiative being pushed by a group calling itself, rather ironically, the Missouri Civil Rights Initiative.

State Rep. Talibdin El-Amin (D-St. Louis City), one of the organizers of the event, told PubDef that this issue is not just about reserving jobs and spots in higher education for African-Americans. He contends that the entire country benefits from diversity.

“We wanted to convey that this is not solely an African-American issue,” said El-Amin. “We’re trying not to be reactionary… trying to make sure people are being educated as to the deceptive language that is being used.”

El-Amin went on to say that he expects any bill attacking Affirmative Action to receive strong Democratic opposition, and that he has spoken to some Republican lawmakers that he has worked with in the past that will also “be inclined to support” Affirmative Action.

While opponents contend that Affirmative Action programs have outlasted their usefulness, El-Amin couldn’t disagree more.

“You can look at the numbers, and there is a disparity. It is obvious that you need some type of remedy,” he said. And he will continue to feel that way, “until they can show me some numbers” to the contrary.