European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 3, 1977, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 12 the stars and stripes monday october 3, 1977 George f. Will Bakke Brief is ominous racial document the administration s Bakke Brief is the most ominous document concerning race to Issue from the Federal government in this Century. It says race is ordinarily irrelevant to an individual s rights and generally an illegitimate basis for allocating Opportunity but. But for All the foreseeable future America must cultivate  Allan Bakke a White was denied admission to a California medical school which reserved 16 of 100 places for Blacks and other approved minorities. Many of the successful minority applicants ranked substantially below Bakke by the school s criteria. California s supreme court said the school discriminated against Bakke on the basis of race violating the constitutional guarantee of equal Protection of the  the administration s Brief urges the . Supreme court to Rule on narrow technical grounds that Bakke s Case should be rear Gued in California courts. But it advocates standards that would make it virtually impossible for Bakke to win. The Brief affirms a school s right to adopt some minority sensitive programs today s euphemism for reverse discrimination even when they deprive Whites of opportunities they otherwise would enjoy. And the Brief is less important As a Legal document than As a political manifesto it is an exhortation to racial discrimination throughout society. The Brief says that regarding admissions to professional schools where All applicants Are College graduate discrimination in favor of government approved minorities is not just constitutional but also morally obligatory because discrimination elsewhere in society against individuals or their forbears makes it difficult fairly to evaluate the abilities and Promise of each new applicant without Tak ing his race into  Blacks must overcome More non academic hurdles than Whites must overcome to get particular grades so evaluating grades requires cognizance of  but the Brief s logic applies beyond professional schools to All schools and to pm the opinions expressed in the columns and cartoons on this Page represent those of the authors and Are in no Way to be considered As representing the views of the stars and stripes or the United states government. Ploy ment wherever Whites and Blacks now compete under rules that do not take cognizance of  already some employers can be required to differentially validate employment tests a euphemism for using lower passing scores for Blacks than for Whites. Purporting to explain the Brief attorney general Griffen Bell said he opposes exclusionary quotas. Evidently he under stands neither quotas nor the Brief. All quotas Are exclusionary they exclude persons who Are not members of approved groups. An Early version of the Brief writ ten before Bell s Justice department Buck led beneath pressure made the obvious Point that quotas involve using race As a tool of exclusion As the medical school used them against Bakke. If Bell thinks the Brief does not support quotas he should consider that a recipe for pudding makes pudding even if it does t use the word  Bell supports quotas if he supports the Brief which sup ports allocating opportunities on the basis of ethnic quantities rather than individual  order that the effects of past discrimination will not mask an individual s Merit the Brief says certain govern ment approved racial and ethnic groups and not just individuals should have rights. If this doctrine saturates policy american politics will be permanently Poi soned. Politics will be an endless struggle for preference a scramble to determine which minorities will receive what slice of educational and employment opportunities. If you doubt that this will be permanent consider that the Brief says society must restore victims of discrimination to the position they would have occupied but for the discrimination against them or their  who will decide and by what criteria when restoration a strange word to chose has been completed As Long As prior discrimination has pre sent effects says the Brief Mere neutrality to race is insufficient. As Long As the effects. Persist the employment of race consciousness in rectifying that discrimination should not be  obviously Mere neutrality on race will be impermissible and race consciousness will be obligatory for generations. The cruellest consequence of this is the devaluing of Black achievement. School segregation was rightly held unconstitutional because it stigmatized Blacks. But so does discrimination for Blacks. If it becomes pervasive policy the Success of Blacks in the professions will be tainted Blacks will have been declared wards of the state officially stigmatized As in capable of competing. It is profoundly sad that Black leaders clamor for the Patron izing paternalistic policy of the Bakke Brief. C Washington Post action Jesse l. Jackson school problems Are Challenge to All everywhere you look the coun try s Public schools Are being challenged to produce graduates who can at least read their diplomas. Everyone has been getting into the shape up or get Shook up act politicians news magazines and news papers parents and resentful Young graduates Maverick educators and Many others including me. At Issue Are some incontrovertible fact schools Aren t doing their jobs As Well As they should. There Are thousands of Young illiterate High school graduates around to prove that. But that does t mean our schools do eve columns comments Grything wrong. Consider what the schools do that no one else can or will they transmit the Basic skills of communication and learning better than anyplace else including most Homes. They accumulate information in their libraries and in human memory Banks that become priceless resources in Many communities. They Cross fertilize our society. Schools bring together those who otherwise might us it distributed by cos to Jeles mics Syndicate never Cross the lines Between them lines of religion economics race culture and politics. Schools better than anywhere else give children a sense of How Man functions As a living creature and As Well a sense of How he fits into the history of the universe. And schools provide unique links be tween the generations. Children take Home the new ideas and awareness of their times and share them with their parents. Though they May not teach children to read words Well schools teach children to Deal with each other not with each other s differences. These Are some of the things schools do better than anyone else. But there Are things that schools can t do very Well not without the Community s help. Consider some of them schools cannot Stop vandalism in their own hallways and playgrounds last year that Cost our schools $600 million. Schools can t prevent personal assaults from happening on school grounds either there were 70,000 last year. Schools can t seem to guide students to the feelings and awareness necessary to Stop the nation s teen age pregnancy Epi Demic. Schools seem incapable of providing attitudinal antidotes to the superficial values and lifestyles Young people learn from their television sets machines that will have taken 15,000 hours of their lives be fore they Are 15 years old. Schools have failed to substitute adequately for parents As the primary source of discipline inspiration and love. Schools have failed to stimulate their Community s economics so that the school s graduates will have jobs. Schools seem unable to replace churches As transmission Points for the attitudes that Foster a Community sense of morality. The problem is we ask the schools to do too much. The fact is schools can t be a dumping ground for All the culture s Mal Adies. The fact is it takes All institutions of society to see to the present and future need of our children. The problem is school scan t do what parents won t do. The Challenge to you and to me is As Clear As the crisis in our schools share the burdens and reap a share of the glory. C los Angeles times