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Petitioners work to end Missouri's affirmative-action programs
Will affirmative action be a thing of the past in Missouri? Tim Asher hopes so.
Asher is executive director of the Missouri Civil Rights Initiative. He has filed a petition to amend the Missouri Constitution to ban state and local affirmative-action programs. “Everyone should be treated equally, but the state goes beyond fairness to give preferential treatment to minorities,” Asher said.
The petition is being presented to voters as a civil-rights initiative. The petition, and the framing of it as a civil rights issue, has alarmed many people and groups in the area and has led to the formation of a coalition known as WE CAN, which stands for Working to Empower Community Action Now.
Brandon Davis, the coalition director, said that he and others began hearing about the Missouri Civil Rights Initiative in early 2007. Democratic State Senator Rita Days came to him and asked what he thought should be done about it. “We built a broad coalition of groups who wouldn’t typically work with one another,” Davis said.
When MoCRI originally presented the initiative to the Secretary of State, the proposed ballot language discussed “prohibit[ing] any form of discrimination” but made no reference to ongoing efforts, such as affirmative action programs, that have been put in place to ensure greater involvement for women and racial minorities in government business. The amendment would affect government policies that concern “public employment, public education or public contracting.”
However, after a tussle in court, the proposed amendment’s effect on affirmative-action programs has been highlighted.
The ballot language now reads, “Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to: Ban state and local government affirmative action programs that give preferential treatment in public contracting, employment or education based on race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin unless such programs are necessary to establish or maintain eligibility for federal funding or to comply with an existing court order?”
On Feb. 13, a public hearing to “save affirmative action” was held at Harris-Stowe State University. The hearing was presented by six different groups: the American Civil Liberties Union, FOCUS St. Louis, Greater Kansas City AFL-CIO, Jobs with Justice Worker’s Rights Board, Metropolitan Congregations United of St. Louis and the National Conference for Community and Justice.
Speakers at the hearing included Terry Jones, a political science and public policy administration professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis; County Councilwoman Barbara Fraser; Dick Fleming, chief executive officer of the Regional Chamber and Growth Association; and Tony Thompson, CEO of Kwame Construction.
Fraser spoke of obstacles she encountered when she enrolled at the University of North Carolina. When she attended, women were not admitted until their junior year, when they were considered “serious students.” In 1983, Fraser won a seat on the University City School Board but met resistance from some people who told her that they hadn’t considered voting for a woman before. She pointed out that there are now only 16 women in the U.S. Senate. “We’ve made progress, but we’re not finished,” Fraser said.
Presenters at the hearing cited statistics to support the idea that minority job participation and college admissions decrease when affirmative action is removed as a consideration.
California, Washington and Michigan have already passed measures similar to MoCRI. Missouri, Arizona, Colorado, Nebraska and Oklahoma are targeted this year.
Davis said that the WE CAN coalition has begun a campaign called “Think Before You Ink,” which is designed to educate voters about the true nature of MoCRI. “One thing we do is send our volunteers to places where we know the petitions are being distributed, usually by paid petition workers, so that we can explain to voters what they are being asked to sign,” Davis said.
Asher said that he decided to form MoCRI as a result of his experience as the director of admissions at a small community college. He said that he saw instances of unfairness when preferential treatment was shown to some applicants.
When asked who the main supporters of MoCRI are, Asher replied, “The people. They’re the only ones who matter.” Asher said that individuals and foundations are allowed to contribute to the cause, but that most of the support comes from individuals who believe in equal, but not preferential, rights.
Members of the WE CAN coalition aren’t certain about funding for MoCRI. A California-based activist and businessman named Ward Connerly seems to be the guiding force in each state where such initiatives have been organized, and he is listed as a “mentor” on MoCRI’s website.
But, says Joan Suarez, who chaired the hearing in February, “Connerly is a wealthy man but not that wealthy.” There is speculation among some that funding comes from contractors who would prefer not to deal with the requirements of affirmative-action plans.
Over the years, Connerly has come under a great deal of scrutiny. Connerly and his wife, Ilene, started a business called Connerly & Associates in 1973. The firm has lobbied for building- industry concerns. Such organizations were among the largest contributors to Proposition 209 in California, which is a model for the Missouri Civil Rights Initiative and similar initiatives in other states.
Opponents of MoCRI believe that MoCRI has nothing to do with civil rights but everything to do with money and comfort. A Ms. magazine article refers to a “good ole boys” system that would prefer not to look beyond its own network when awarding contracts. For example, according to Ms., contracts awarded by the California Department of Transportation to women- and minority-owned businesses prior to Proposition 209 reached an all-time high of nearly 28 percent in 1994. That number fell to just over 8 percent by 2002, six years after Proposition 209’s passage.
Jim Webb, president of the St. Louis Minority Business Council, fears that Missouri would suffer a similar fate if MoCRI became a reality. He noted that Gov. Matt Blunt has established a goal that 10 percent of business contracts should go to minority-owned businesses and 5 percent to women-owned businesses, and that these goals have not been met.
MoCRI “would set Missouri back 30 years,” Webb said. “If there isn’t some requirement for inclusion, inclusion goes away.”
Currently, Webb explained, minority businesses are responsible for $3 billion in sales and businesses in Missouri, and, he said, “they pay taxes on this income.” He fears that the Missouri Civil Rights Initiative would decrease minority participation in contracts and jobs by 20 to 25 percent.
“The problem with the Missouri Civil Rights Initiative is that it’s misleading,” Webb said. “It has nothing to do with civil rights.” Webb said that inclusion could become a matter of convenience, whereby an employer or someone awarding a contract might feel, “If I don’t have to [be inclusive], I won’t.”
Asked how many of the signatures needed for placement on the November ballot have been obtained, Tim Asher was vague. “We’re doing pretty well,” he said but declined to reveal specific numbers. Depending on exactly which areas of the state the signatures are collected, the campaign needs between 150,000 to 180,000 signatures by May 8.
Information about the Missouri Civil Rights Initiative can be found at its website, www.missouricri.org, or by calling 816-868-3933.
Information about WE CAN is available at www.wecanmo.org or by calling 877-644-0466.
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