California Proposition 16: Restoring Affirmative Action

This is a controversial proposition among Asian-American communities for it is viewed  as taking away a merit base selection and replacing with racial quotas.

In 1996, California voters passed Proposition 209, a constitutional amendment banning affirmative action at state institutions.   The law dictates that government agencies and universities cannot factor in someone's race, gender or ethnicity in making, hiring and admission decisions.   For example, the county cannot set goals for how many contracts they can award to minority owned businesses.  And universities cannot set quota for admission based on ethnic groups.  

The US Supreme Court struck down on the use of quotas for university admissions in its 1978 Bakke case.

But if 2/3 of the voters approve Proposition 16 this coming November, a constitutional amendment will allow affirmative action at state institutions.  

For Asian American families, the main argument is simply why their hard working, overachieving children can be denied the admission to the best public universities because of their race. 

Whether this is myth or fact, there is enough mistrust of the educational system to guard itself and its proper interpretation of the laws that the opposition of this proposition is a serious movement in the Asian American communities.

Let the data speak for themselves and guide the debate: 

No race or ethnic group constitutes a majority of California's population: 39% of state residents are Latino, 37% are white, 15% are Asian American, 6% are African American, 3% are multiracial, and fewer than 1% are American Indian or Pacific Islander, according to 2018 data.

In 2018, for California State University system, 41.5% of enrollment are Hispanic/Latino, 15.9% are Asian, 4% are African American, and 23% are white.  

In 2019, the numbers are actually increased for Hispanic at 43%,  decreased for white at 22.4% while stayed constant for Asian.

In 2018, 25% of enrollment are Hispanic/Latino in University of California system, 4% are African American, 20% are white and 35% are Asian American.  The numbers are similar in 2019.  

The California API Legislative Caucus voted for the ACA 5 measure to ask voters if they want to reinstate affirmative action policies.  

Depending on your viewpoint but some people believe by allowing government agencies to make decision based on affirmative action can be a double-edged sword.  When trying to make strides in diversity for diversity sake, the state can end up sacrificing merit for the sake of diversity.  There is a fine balance between diversity, the elimination of structural racism and being given the opportunity equally based on merit and without prejudice based on race, ethnicity and sex. 

The state has made tremendous strides in the last 50 years  The proof is in a vibrant economy, strong multicultural social fabric and tolerance with great opportunities for immigrants and ethnic minorities.  

The ultimate decision is at the hand of the voters and sometime too much of a good thing might not be enough.