proportionate representation will occur over time, but government and business are trying to mandate it now via preferences. This is merely ôcosmeticö and actually detrimental. ôRepresentation can be manufactured; development is always hard-earned.ö
Those who support the policy assume that preferences can make equality. They equate deference with development, believing ôthat a preference will in itself instillàskill and competency in the young minorities who receive it.ö Another assumption is that once the preference is conferred, other talents inevitably emerge that allow the student to blossom and perform at a level equal to his more qualified classmates (Steele, 1998, p. 140).
Affirmative action leads to an ôenlargement of self-doubtö among African-Americans. The policy implies that blacks are inferior, so that any person of color who ômakes itö will always be accompanied by doubts about her ability. Racial preferences engender doubt in the minds of blacks and whites, so much so that African-Americans drop out of college at five times the rate of whit
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