Originally posted by Aquarian
as I said earlier, I'm pretty sure that AA is at or near the end of it's usefullness. But to argue that it was never necessary is beyond the pale. Most of us have not had to live thru the era when blacks were pushed to the back of the bus (which oddly is where I prefer to sit), where they could not use the same water fountains, bathrooms, doorways, schools, etc. that whites did. The educational and employment opportunities for blacks back in those days would never have allowed them a chance of participating equally in society.
Today, the vast majority (IMO) of schools and businesses would not discriminate with or without legal reasons. There would certainly be some that would, as there are some that do even with the laws we have and that number would most likely be larger without these laws. But business principals would correct these institutions in due course I think, and the alternative avenues that did not discriminate would reap the benefits in the mean time of catering to a wider audience and being able to draw from a wider pool of talent.
Since I like analogies, our past treatment of blacks can be likened to breaking both of someone's legs and telling them they are free to walk. eventually we gave them crutches (AA) which helped but the time has come (or is very close, I don't feel I have the appropriate knowledge base to decide this precisely) for them to throw away the crutches and learn to walk on their own.
