Affirmative action: If R-88 passes, quotas inevitable

Re: “Referendum 88 restores opportunity,” (TNT, 10/17).

I was struck by a couple of statements in your endorsement. First: “They (public employers) could conduct targeted outreach to disadvantaged and underrepresented groups - as long as there’s no preferential treatment.”

What’s the difference between the euphemistically “targeted outreach” and “preferential treatment?”

As for your concern over the word “quota rearing its ugly head,” quotas always occur when you have affirmative action.

As a retired civil servant with extensive experience in selecting new hires, I am familiar with set asides for positions to be filled only by pre-selected groups. I often had to choose between the lesser of two evils: filling a vacancy with an individual with questionable qualifications or leaving the position unfilled.

We have had favored status for groups since the mid-1960s. How much longer need it go on before we decide it’s time for these groups to stand on their own two feet?

That’s what initiative 200 did and I see no need to reverse that decision.

This story was originally published October 23, 2019 at 4:39 PM with the headline "Affirmative action: If R-88 passes, quotas inevitable."