Saturday, April 15, 2006

Affirmative Action?


In the ongoing debate and discussion about reservation (aka quota system), some   bloggers have suggested that they might prefer of affirmative action over reservation. To me, they are both means to the same end; in particular, an affirmative action program can be designed so exquisitely to mimic a program of quotas that the outcomes are identical.

Even if their outcomes are not identical, the goal is still the same: making opportunities available to groups that were denied them for ages under some pretext or the other.

Thus, affirmative action is just reservation by another name, and sounds as sweet.

* * *

I found this excellent essay on Affirmative Action over at the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. It summarizes all the philosophical, moral, ethical and legal issues thrown up by AA. It's a little long, but you will greatly benefit from the discussion in Sections 5-9 which deal with AA in academia.

8 Comments:

  1. Anonymous said...

    No it is not !

    Lawmakers in the USA go to great lengths to contrast affirmative action with the quota system.

    The current reservation politics is clouded by talking about SC/STs and OBCs in the same breath without batting an eyelid.

    The biggest "precciioss" - the crown jewel - the biggest secret protected by the OBC community is community wise breakup of how reservations have benefited over the past 60 years. All talk of a measurement of the quota system will by met with stiff resistance by the powerful OBCs.

    We also should not fear to talk openly about *individual OBC groups*.

    We should learn to leave out SC/STs completely out of the current discussion. Everyone recognizes the need for historical redressal.

    Can we do this ?

    ----

    Good - now let us focus on the current issue. If I tell you that a small group of OBCs are now enjoying reservation for the third generation. This in addition to the fact that they were never backward of oppressed to begin with. Can we measure how many doctors were benefited from this policy ?

    Can you support a study of land ownership among different communities ? You will be startled and shocked at how little the Dalits own and how much some (so called) backward castes own.

    Even today we are seeing instant millionaires being created by wealthy landowners (gounders, reddiars, naickers, mudaliars) by selling their land to IT companies, and others. The Dalits/SC/STs are just standing by the sidelines scratching their heads. Yes, they are wondering how did these wealthy landowners become backward communities !

    You can skim the surface of any issue by mixing the talk of merit. No one can claim that merit will be compromised by admitting an very intellignet OBC instead of an outstanding FC.

    That debate is tangential. The real debate is one of *claim* to the benefits of reservation.

    Lastly, someone on this blog claimed "for the past 60 years 9/10 politicians are forward castes,India still sucks"

    This kind of bad data is prevalent in this debate. The reality is the exact opposite atleast in TN/Karnataka. The last assembly saw only 2 FC MLAs compared to 93 just from *one* OBC community.

  2. Anonymous said...

    Those who think that affirmative action is better than the reservation system we have in India should check out the following paper in the civil rights journal.

    http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HSP/is_1_4/ai_66678565

  3. Abi said...

    Anon, Krish: Thanks for your comments. I do realize that 'quotas' are a subset of a broader category of programs that would be called 'affirmative action'. Since their goals are the same, I am perfectly happy with either of them. The devil, as they say, is certainly in the details.

    I also realize, Anon, that OBC reservation is quite controversial, since it's alleged that the OBC list seems to include quite a few landed, well-off communities. If this allegation is true, this list needs some serious revision. At the same time, these communities are *not* the only ones on that list!

    Krish: Thanks for the pointer to that article. That was quite interesting and informative.

  4. Anonymous said...

    Since their goals are the same, I am perfectly happy with either of them. The devil, as they say, is certainly in the details.

    The end justifies the means?

  5. Anonymous said...

    The devil is indeed in the details.

    What is the difference between a dirt-poor brahmin and a dirt-poor person belonging to an SC/ST? Does the brahmin inherently have better opportunities based on his birth?

    Reservations are not the answer to the social inequality problem. But if we must have reservations, they must be based on financial condition rather than being based on birth alone.

    In this way, people who have benefitted from reservation join the mainstream and move out of the purview of reservation.

    Onkar

  6. Anonymous said...

    What Onkar says, is the crux of the matter. I am FOR reservation if the economic condition is also considered. Otherwise, it is all just a sham.

  7. Anonymous said...

    I also realize, Anon, that OBC reservation is quite controversial, since it's alleged that the OBC list seems to include quite a few landed, well-off communities. If this allegation is true, this list needs some serious revision.

    Thanks and congratulations for finding the absolute core of the issue.

    Abi, if someone walks up to you and gives you a fruit. He says it is an orange, but you are suspicious and ask, "hey this looks like a lemon to me, I know oranges are much larger than this". The person insists it is an orange, and shows a knife and forces you to eat the lemon all the while pretending you are eating an orange.

    That is the situation today.

    Under the guise of social justice - we are made to accept a system of selective patronage.

    You say, the OBC list needs a major revision. I say that is impossible in the current framework. A revision or even a review of the OBC is never going to happen. Why would it ? Who would do it ?

    Why go so far ? Even a study of the actual components of the OBC will not happen.

    Yes there are other communities within the OBC category. If I tell you that a few components take up an overwhelming majority of OBC benefits - will you believe me ? Probably not, you will ask me for data. Which I cannot provide because there has been and never will be a statistical survey.

    We can only look at data that leaks out unintentionally, such as the data about last years medical exams in TN (only 40 so called FC students could secure seats even when 190 seats were available for them to compete in) OBC students took up 130+ seats from the open quota. This has probably been the case for over 40 years. We will never know.

  8. Anonymous said...

    Big difference between Affirmative Action in the US and the way the quota system works in India. Affirmative Action is completely voluntary on the part of the institutes and companies. Also, the percentage nowhere nears the 22.5% figure for SC/STs and 27% for OBCs.