1. African-American women. 2. Latino men. 3. Native Americans.

David Waymire, a leading opponent of the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, claims supporters “ignore racism.” We don’t ignore it. Unlike him, we believe you cannot combat discrimination with discrimination. Treating people differently based on race is racism and Waymire perpetuates it through preferences.

Also, Waymire calls for more discussion on how affirmative action impacts women. Barbara Grutter, President of Toward a Fair Michigan, was denied admission to the University of Michigan Law School because her gender was trumped by race. Obviously, the impact on her was negative. But we shouldn’t stop the discussion with women. Let’s have a discussion on how affirmative action impacts everyone. Perhaps Waymire could start the discussion by providing us with a ranking of preferences. Is an African-American woman more deserving than a Latino man? How about Native Americans? Where should they be ranked? If we’re going to measure impact, we need a starting point.

[Letter to the Editor - The Flint Journal. Submitted 03/27/2006.]