Reading “The Ironies of Affirmative Action” by John Skrentny, I found a parallel between one of the points he argues and that of aversive racism, which I have studied in psychology last semester.  According to Dovidio and all,  aversive racism is when egalitarian whites act in a racist way when their self image is not threatened and when they can give an non-racist reason for a racist action, to themselves and to society (Dovidio and all, p.73).
     Many people say they are opposed to affirmative action because it “ violates the notion of open and fair individual competition.” (P.20).  These people do not see themselves as racists, on the contrary they promote equality and that is why -in their view- everyone should be treated equally with no regard to their racial background.  The reason African Americans should not have a quota is not because they are black, but because it is unfair to the rest.  According to the theory of aversive racism, this is a case in which a non-racist excuse has been given for a racist action.
     Skrentny shows that with parallel affirmative action issues the matter of fairness is not an issue.  “When the issue has been employment preferences for blacks, merit has seemed to be a most sacred principle of job allocation.... when the preferences have been for veterans , merit has meant very little” (p.57).  The question is not a question of principle then, it is a question of color.
     The white majority can relate to veterans.  Blacks are different.  They are part of another group, and have different needs.  In other words they are seen as the outgroup *1, which is the reason that they should be treated differently.  That is another definition for racism.
 Skrentny argues that “[t]he interest of resisting affirmative action is ... a moral one: blacks are not seen as deserving of preference” (p.67).   There is a double standard in American thinking. The same question (whether or not affirmative action should be used)  is answered differently according to the group it should benefit.   Some people are seen as more worth as others.  “Throughout American history some groups have simply been constructed as morally worthy and others have not” (p.63).  Affirmative action, therefore, is not a principle, which Americans reject, it is only opposed when it helps people whom the majority regards as unworthy of help.  “Affirmative action has been objected because of its racial beneficiary” (p.63).
 

*1 Outgroup is a group to which we do not belong.  Ingroup: is the group we belong to.  Outgroup homogeneity bias is the “tendency to assume greater similarity among members of outgroup than members of ingroup.” (Diana Ponzo).
References:
 Dovidio and all.  Aversive Racism and Resistance to Affirmative Action: Perceptions of Justice Are not Necessarily Color Blind.  Basic And Applied Social Psychology, 1994, 15, 71-86
 

Sara Ababneh                                                                    March  2000