Affirmative Action and Lessons from the Super Bowl
Who’s lowering the bar?
It’s hard to miss.
David French discovered a German philosopher who became an apologist for the Third Reich back in the 1930s. The essence of his argument was what he called the “friend/enemy distinction.” In other words, in politics, if you are going to win the day and get what you want, you must understand that the opposition is not just someone with a different point of view, but “the enemy.” To prevail, one must be ready to distinguish between friend and enemy. Embrace the friend. Demolish the enemy.
The religious right, now synonymous with MAGA Republicanism, embraces this view of the world. You are either friend or enemy. It doesn’t take long to figure out which. The enemy can be readily labeled in short-hand. All it takes is a single word - or an acronym. “Communist.” “Socialist.” “Marxist.” “Democrat.” “Progressive.” “Liberal.” “Woke.” Promoter of “C.R.T.” and/or “D.E.I.”
They complain about “cancel culture” because they’ve been called out for shameless prejudice or unbridled bigotry or flat-out racism or brazen sexism. But just as they cry foul, they turn around and cancel, defund, fire, or eliminate anyone who has, in their judgment, earned any one of the labels mentioned above.
This dark variation on the “us versus them” theme is playing out in the headlines as I write.
Who is to blame? Who or what is the “enemy”? FDR’s New Deal. Johnson’s Great Society. “Obamacare.” Government addressing injustice. Inequality. Providing education and health care. Repairing the injuries and abuses of the past. Acknowledging the needs of the marginalized. Marxism. Redistribution of wealth.
Affirmative action.
Frankly, it’s hard to measure the positive impact of Affirmative Action (A.A.) in our country. Where whiteness once reigned supreme, schools have become places of rich, diversified student bodies. Corporations reflect the ethnic diversity of our nation. The military looks like America. Neighborhoods, too. Movies, television, and entertainment have become a rainbow coalition.
So why did California outlaw Affirmative Action? And why did the Supreme Court in 2023 determine that A.A. is “unconstitutional”?
Supposedly, A.A. has done more harm than good. According to the Court, A.A. violates the Constitution’s guarantee of “equal protection under the law.” In other words, when certain people groups get priority, “more qualified” applicants get rejected.
In common parlance, it’s “reverse discrimination.” White students are rejected and replaced by “less qualified” black students, they say. Asian students were rejected, too, because of racial “quotas.”
The bottom line assumption - A.A. “lowers the bar.”
These false narratives form a powerful resistance to change. Where does this resistance come from?
Picture yourself standing on the podium along with the President as he gives a “State of the Union Address.” As you face this audience of congressional leaders in Joint Session, Republicans will be on your left (their right) and Democrats will be on your right (their left). Take a moment to ponder and size up the general socioeconomic and ethnic make-up of each group. On your left - aging, white, wealthy males in dark suits and probably red ties comprise the overwhelming majority. On your right - you see before you a widely diverse reflection of America.
The resistance to A.A. (and D.E.I. and C.R.T.), as we all know, comes not from your right but from your left. And from their seats facing you, they are on the right.
“Lowering the bar” is a widely held but false narrative.
This frontal and seemingly ubiquitous attack on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion is personal for me. I’ve been working in this field for more than six years. We didn’t call it DEI or CRT - rather, we called it “racial reconciliation” and “restorative justice.” If you want to get technical, you can draw subtle distinctions between the labels. But it is all pretty much the same.
I must say that it has been one of the most beautiful, the most meaningful and the most rewarding endeavors in my long career. It’s caused me to call into question much of what I assumed to be true - about my country, about my religion, about history, about politics, and much more. I’ve had to unlearn things - recognizing the toxicity, the damage, the harm - but also affirming the beauty, the wonder the awe of the world outside my tribe - my silo (pick your metaphor).
My circle of friends now includes real people who have been the beneficiaries of Affirmative Action. They are physicians, attorneys, social workers, business entrepreneurs, government executives, professors, authors, theologians and more. To suggest that these friends “lowered the bar” when they won their acceptance at the university or the law school or the medical school or the graduate school or got hired for the role would be a silly, ignorant mistake. As I’ve listened to their stories, a common theme gets repeated. “From my earliest days, I was told that I would have to work twice as hard to get half as far as my white friends.”
And they did.
They worked twice as hard. They read the books. Took notes in class. Passed the exams. Excelled in class. Won the certifications. Earned the degrees. Donned the cap and gown. Got the job. And the promotions. In so many cases, they were and are over-qualified.
But they will also bear witness to painful, obstinant resistance. While it was rarely stated - the question, “What are YOU doing here?” hung over the scene like an ominous cloud. Then that not-so-subtle dismissal: “You’re just one more D.E.I. hire/admittance.” The intense pressure to prove one’s worth, one’s place, is relentless.
Exhausting.
* * * * * * *
One of the most famous beneficiaries of affirmative action is Justice Clarence Thomas. Apart from A.A., he would never have received the education or ascended to the legal stratosphere of the Supreme Court, the highest court in the land. And yet, to this very day, he holds affirmative action in utter contempt. (Google it.) He happily signed off on the declaration that A.A. is unconstitutional. (Huh?)
So which is it? Which is more a problem - A.A.? Or the resistance to A.A.?
And who, then, is “lowering the bar”?
Think about it. What qualifies one to be Secretary of State? Secretary of Defense? Secretary of Education? A Supreme Court Justice?
I’m old enough to remember that a candidate for one of these high offices assumes some basic things - like academic credentials, proven, documented achievement in the field or discipline, respect among peers, a high level of rich, productive experience, a track record of accomplishment, a capacity to articulate mission and purpose, and the ability to motivate and inspire not only the department but the nation.
This is not complicated.
I can’t think of one candidate for the President’s Cabinet that comes close to meeting these fundamental prerequisites. Not one. (Well, maybe Marco Rubio. Maybe.)
In the mind of the President, there are just two primary qualifications for his candidate picks: 1) absolute loyalty to Trump and 2) an attractive appearance in front of the camera.
He openly declares, “We’re ridding the country of Woke. We’re eliminating D.E.I. from the federal government and the country. We’re going to make this a colorblind nation, based on merit.”
Merit? Hmmm.
So, let’s ask - who has “lowered the bar?”
* * * * * * *
As I write, It’s Monday morning. Last night, the Eagles won the Super Bowl.
While I have been feeling a sense of defeat and even despair over the attack on Woke and DEI, just this morning, the USA TODAY headline gives me a renewed sense of hope.
Thank you Philadelphia Eagles.
Opinion: Super Bowl a rejection of Trump's vision for America
I’d forgotten about the 2018 Super Bowl, the last time the Eagles won the Lombardi Trophy. Then President Trump invited the team to the White House to celebrate their victory.
The previous fall, he openly trashed Colin Kaepernick for taking a knee in protest during the national anthem. At a rally in Alabama, Trump yelled, “Get that son of a bitch [Kaepernick] off the field right now. Out! He's fired. He's fired!"
The Eagles were not pleased that a President would meddle in the affairs of the NFL and so openly trash a powerfully popular and accomplished athlete for expressing his opinion.
So, after winning the Super Bowl in 2018, they declined the White House invite. They publicly snubbed the President of the United States. Trump fumed.
This year, on January 26th he said on his Truth Social, “Congratulations to the Kansas City Chiefs. What a GREAT Team… including those fantastic FANS, that voted for me (MAGA!) in record numbers.” Yesterday, when Trump arrived at the New Orleans Superdome with all the hoopla and security (the first President in history to attend a Super Bowl), he was there expecting the Eagles to fall - and to celebrate the anticipated win of his favored Kansas City Chiefs.
(It should be noted here that not all the Chiefs or all the fans would identify as MAGA, for sure.)
Upon his arrival in the highly visible and conspicuous box, he reveled in the applause and adoration. He so looked forward to welcoming his victorious Chiefs at the White House. Maybe Taylor Swift would show up, too. What a spectacle!
But by the end of the first half, the Chiefs tanked. As the second half opened, the Eagles scored again.
Trump looked at his watch and gave the order. He and his entourage packed up and in a huff left in the third quarter. We’re outta here. Off they went, security and all.
* * * * * * * * *
USA TODAY Opinion got it right. From start to finish, the Super Bowl reflected an America that is the antithesis of the MAGA world. Diversity reigned. From the opening musical acts to John Baptiste and the national anthem, the color guard, the ethnic makeup of the players, the halftime show, and the commercials, it was equal time for us all.
Harrison Ford’s line in his ad for JEEP went like this: “Real heroes are humble. They’re not driven by pride. Pride is a terrible driver… our differences can be our strength.” The lively New Orleans jazz. The Black National Anthem - “Lift Up Your Voice and Sing.” NIKE’s admonition in a star-studded black and white collage of female champions, narrated by Doechii, identified all the nay-sayers and admonished us all to “Just Win.”
Thanks to some of my young friends and The Daily Podcast, I got a full briefing on the Kendrick Lamar/Drake drama. The subtleties of his performance will be the subject of study and commentary for years to come. But when Kendrick’s dancers, dressed in red, white, and blue, formed an American flag, he made a dramatic statement: Old Glory is not the exclusive property of MAGA Republicans.
The conservative fury over Kendrick’s half-time show is evidence enough.
Diversity. Equity, Inclusion - D.E.I. - is alive and well in America.
It’s affirmative action.
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How a German Thinker Explains MAGA Morality by David French, NEW YORK TIMES Jan. 26, 2025
Opinion: Super Bowl a rejection of Trump's vision for America by Nancy Armour USA TODAY Feb. 10, 2025
The Story of ‘Not Like Us’ on The Daily Podcast February 7, 2025