This letter is in response to Mr. Jordan Miller's Oct. 29 (letter) "True Equality Requires System Based on Merit, Not Racial Preferences," with whom I agree on some points. It is true that ideally there should be a level playing field for all Americans.
However, it should be evident that this has never been the case in this country. Minorities lack representation in many of the key areas pertinent to the stability and success of this country, including the political arena and the sciences. Affirmative action is a social program that was initiated in order to address this issue.
It was intended to provide an opportunity for talented and qualified minorities to plug themselves into their desired career field. It almost goes without saying that this program is hardly perfect, not unlike other social programs of this country -- Social Security, welfare, etc.
My issue with Mr. Miller is the assertion that minorities given an opportunity through affirmative action or perhaps simply through the desire to diversify a particular field are underqualified while all the ultra-qualified whites are deprived of a job and left to starve on the streets. This is not the case despite the sometimes limited view that majority culture has of minorities as only being criminals, sex symbols and entertainers. We are a broadly talented and fast-growing portion of this country's population.
As to the Miller (letter) likening affirmative action to Jim Crow, I would hope that it is very clear to Mr. Miller that some whites who might be overlooked for a job today do not have to face the terror and institutionalized injustice that all African Americans faced in the 19th and 20th century.
Michael Duncan
Graduate Student
Medicinal Chemistry
