Article August 3, 1992 Issue

Truly affirmative action

A recognition of man's true nature is at the very heart of Jesus' command to love one another.

David Christian Smith

Check the appropriate box: □ Hispanic; □ Caucasian; □ African-American; □ single; □ divorced; □ over forty; □ under eighteen; □ none of the above.

Labels. Our society is constantly putting people into this group or that. While this is not always harmful, it can lead to some negative lines of thinking. Once we begin classifying people, aren't we tempted also to compare, often unfavorably? One group is considered faster, another smarter, still another More attractive. Individuals are labeled as privileged or underprivileged, affluent or poor, well educated or illiterate. Such assessments can in turn lead to discrimination.

Recently, while filling out applications for graduate school, I became more aware of the term affirmative action, a policy in the United States intended to correct the effects of discrimination. This is what started me thinking about classifications and labels.

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