 Up: Thoughts on Affirmative Action Previous: 3. Mathematics Faculty 4. ConclusionThe man who sent me the message quoted above went on to describe his opposition to the MAA's prize for "outstanding performance by a woman on the Putnam Exam". Now this isn't an important issue to me. Whether or not I favored such a prize, I would respect someone who could not, as a matter of principle, vote for it, especially if that person had a record of active support of equitable treatment for all. But I am suspicious of someone who suddenly "gets religion" and decides to dig in his heels and take a stand for equity on the basis of something as minor as the Putnam prize. Although he misinterpreted my statement above, his instincts weren't totally off the mark. In years past, I encountered instances of more serious discrimination than we would tolerate today. On those rare occasions when I would complain to a male colleague, the response was usually to admit that it was unfair while advising me to overlook it. In essence, I felt my colleagues wanted to make molehills out of mountains. Now, some of them seem to be making mountains out of molehills like the Putnam prize. The danger of affirmative action is not that white males will suffer disproportionate injustice. Indeed, I have seen no convincing evidence of that. Most such claims are based upon anecdotes of outrageous incidents. My reaction to such anecdotes was described in a personal sidebar accompanying TFA. I strongly suspect that most tales of reverse discrimination will, at worst, turn out to be differences of opinion about the relative merits of individuals. The real problem with affirmative action is that it is intended only to provide a temporary, if unsatisfactory, remedy to deep problems without curing the underlying cause. We must be sure that the existence of affirmative action does not deter us from addressing the serious problems which make it necessary and must strive to replace it by fair and equitable treatment for all. However, this will require significant changes in both the educational process and societal attitudes. The abandonment of affirmative action because it is no longer needed should be the culmination of that process; not the first step on the long road to true equity.
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