The End of Affirmative Action

摘要

Ward connerly owns precisely half of a land-use consulting firm in Sacramento. His wife, Ilene, owns the other half. In the perverse world of racial preference politics, this is a rather dramatic statement of moral principle. Connerly is black; his wife is white. "If I were to own, say, 51 percent, we could make a very nice piece of change," he says. Connerly & Associates would then be a minority-owned company. A conga line of white contractors hoping to do business with the state of California猘nd needing to meet affirmative-action guidelines—would come courting. In fact, they do now. "They ask me to go into business with them to be their minority partner," Connerly says. "Look, I was born in Louisiana. I remember drinking from 'colored only' water fountains. That was degrading. But this is almost as bad. I won't be defined as an 'affirma- tive action' businessman.