Jackson leads protest
over U-M case Jackson leads protest
over U-M case
He says students should fight court's decision
March 30, 2001
BY ERIK LORDS and MARYANNE GEORGE
FREE PRESS EDUCATION WRITERS
Fallout from a U.S. district judge's ruling against the University of Michigan's law school continued Thursday, as nearly 1,000 students gathered on the campus to hear the Rev. Jesse Jackson and others denounce the decision. In a 30-minute speech peppered with humor and historical references, Jackson enthralled the crowd and urged people to fight for a reversal of U.S. District Judge Bernard Friedman's ruling Tuesday that the U-M law school admissions policy is illegal.
Jackson told the multiracial gathering of students that "Dr. King would be proud of you" and that although they were too young for the March on Washington or the historic civil rights march in Selma, they can still make a difference. "It's Ann Arbor and it's your day," he said. "Don't let these confederates turn back the clock. This is an American flag, not a Confederate flag." He called for inclusion in the law school's admissions."We didn't know how good baseball could be until everybody could play," Jackson said.
"If we can have black and white at baseball games, and black and white at football games, we should be able to have black and white at law school games." While he didn't address specifics of the 90-page ruling, Jackson said that without government intervention, in the form of Title IX legislation, there might still be a dearth of women's athletic teams on college campuses. He pointed out that George W. Bush was admitted to Yale University largely because his father was a Yale alumnus and had strong political ties to the school.
The younger Bush, he said, gained from an informal form of affirmative action. "He got access to Yale," Jackson said, noting that many students at undergraduate colleges benefit from such policies. "Let's include all factors and make American universities look like America." He also said Secretary of State Colin Powell benefited from affirmative action. "If it's good enough for Colin Powell, it's good enough for you."
Not everyone in attendance agreed with Jackson. "I want to be judged on my personal merit and gains, not from relying on a system," said U-M freshman Ruben Duran, an engineering major from Phoenix, who hoisted a sign that said, "End Affirmative Action." John Carter, a sophomore from Chelsea, is against affirmative action and said: "Whenever you divide and count by race, you are going in the opposite direction.
We should be fighting for a colorblind society." But Carter's close friend, Rachel Tronstein, who stood beside him during the speech, said she supports affirmative action. "The judge's decision was ludicrous," said Tronstein, a sophomore from Bloomfield Hills. "The judge acknowledged that racism is a problem in this country and then said 'who cares?' If he can go to sleep thinking that, then fine. But I sure can't." Carter said he likes the idea that not all of his friends see things the same way. "You can learn a lot from people who disagree with you," he said.
U-M President Lee Bollinger, who participated in a discussion about the future of higher education in a live National Public Radio broadcast from U-M's Rackham Auditorium, said the university would keep fighting to keep affirmative action. "It's going to be a hard fight," Bollinger said after the show. "All we can do in higher education is articulate our principles and bring them to the legal tribunals." Bollinger said newly released census data, showing that Detroit is becoming more segregated, reinforce the need for diversity in higher education. "In the issue of race there still is much to be done," he said.
Contact ERIK LORDS at 313-222-6513 or lords@freepress.com.
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