AFFIRMATIVE ACTION CONTINUED August 27, 2008
Posted by frostygirl in History.Tags: , affirmative action, whites
trackback
Relax Max asked a few questions in his comment on my recent post on Affirmative Action in South Africa and I am going to try and elaborate a bit more to improve understanding of the system in our country.
It is quite a huge subject to cover in the South African context, therefore I will not do an indepth post, just a few highlights, etc.
First of all, follow this link to go to the SA Labour Department’s website to see their definition of Affirmative Action:
http://www.labour.gov.za/basic_guides/bguide_display.jsp?guide_id=5848&programme_id=2670
Also click on the link on this page to see the “Employment Equity Act”.
In 1998 the following was reported on CNN about SA planning to adopt AA:
http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/africa/9810/08/safrica.affirmative.action/
We have a huge majority of blacks in SA as everyone is aware, but prior to the ANC’s take over we have had a history of the minority (whites) paying the bulk of the tax revenues collected and a large portion of this was used to uplift the majority (blacks) i.e. schooling, hospitals, etc. There was only so much that could be done with the taxpayers money given the HUGE majority of blacks who were reliant on upliftment!
The whites actually made the blacks too reliant on handouts instead of teaching them to become self sufficient, but imagine the huge task for a minority race to try and help the majority to be educated, uplifted, taught skills, etc. The present Government cannot manage it either, despite all the International aid they received, there just is not enough resources or skills to cope with the upliftment of the multitude of blacks in South Africa.
Also bear in mind what a big gap there was between the two groups, the whites coming from a skilled and educated background from Europe and the blacks from a traditional “African rural” background with no “first world” skills.
Many people believed that the ANC should have rather gone the “class” route as apposed to the “racial” route when they implemented Affirmative Action. Why? Because there were Blacks, Indians and Coloured people who had the skills to TRULY qualify for a skilled job and who would have been able to handle the position well and they should have been given the opportunity to enter this type of job ahead of a white individual. Go to this link to read more about it:
http://www.hsrcpress.ac.za/product.php?productid=2228
The mistake the ANC made was to go the “racial” route! Now we have a enormous problem on our hands and once again they want to blame Apartheid for this instead of admitting that they threw the unskilled blacks into the deep end and said: “Sink or swim!” and of course the majority sank. To try and understand the enormity of the situation and the absolutely rediculous position we are in at present, go to this link:
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?newslett=1&click_id=79&art_id=vn20080827060000370C991228&set_id=1
So to answer your question Relax Max:
“No, the goals have not been met (they were not well thought out goals anyway and were set too high to achieve) and although a lot of blacks have moved upward in the employment ranks and are earning huge salaries, they are not efficient or effective in their posts as they were given their positions because of their colour not their skills.”
“The majority of the whites still have a good standard of living compared to the lower “class” black people, but the young white people have to seek employment overseas as they have limited opportunities in South Africa.”
So to conclude, Affirmative Action did not succeed in South Africa and should now be phased out and people should be employed on merit, not colour! There are thousands of vacant positions in government and municipal offices waiting to be filled, therefore if white skilled individuals qualify for the jobs they should be employed urgently!
When the ship is sinking (like we are) then differences should be set aside to save the ship and action should be taken to correct the position.
Popularity: 41% [?]
(Sponsor Link: OfferForge | kalahari.net | bidorbuy )
It is very complicated indeed. I am still reading the information you provided in your links, but I already understand a lot more than I did, just from the way you explained what was going on. Thank you for taking the time. I will continue reading the information in your links.
I now see it is a mistake for me to try to compare what we call “Affirmative Action” in my own country with what has been tried in South Africa. One main reason you can’t compare the two is that it is the majority who is paying (in the U.S.), not the minority. And, as the minority rises in education level (and hence higher paying jobs) then they pay as well, through taxes for the various training programs.
In a nutshell, Affirmative Action in the U.S.A. arose as a result of the civil rights movement, which produced a mind set that (1) it is not enough to admit and agree that wrong has been done, and to stop doing that wrong; (2) it is still not enough to begin giving the wronged an equal opportunity at education and jobs; (3) it is, instead, necessary to take overt “Affirmative Action” to attempt to right the wrongs that were done to a segment of society. This Affirmative Action takes the form of preference in getting into college, and in getting low-cost or no-cost loans to attend college or trade schools; and preference in hiring: if a black and a white are equally qualified, the black gets hired. (In government jobs or in large corporate jobs, not binding on small businesses.)
I won’t go into the counter argument against this policy: it is our law and therefore a moot point. Of course, more than a few abuses have occurred, but, in the main, I think blacks in America have seen their lot in life improved greatly, while whites have not suffered unreasonably.
I will continue to study the information you have given me. Thanks again.
[...] AFFIRMATIVE ACTION CONTINUED Sphere: Related Content Ask a Question [...]