Excerpt from Perspectives: The Civil Rights Quarterly
The landmark civil rights laws were passed in the light of day: they were endless y debated, extensively reviewed in Congressional Committees, and finally passed as the result of a broad consensus of both Congressional and polecat opinion. But now we are seeing a concerted effort to gut those laws, an effort earned out in stealth under cover of darkness, and without appropriate consideration by the public or its representatives
The strategy for the counter-attack on the civil rights laws is deceptively simple it consists of adding amendments onto important bills that the Congressional leadership is anxious to pass One such "back door" amendment, for example, was passed by the House of Representatives as a part of the Labor. Health and Human Services. and Education Department appropriations bill. It would bar the use of federal funds to implement or enforce affirmative action programs in employment or in school admissions Another "back-door" amendment would stop the Justice Depart-meet from bringing action to enforce school desegregation through busing Still another would prohibit the Department of Education from requiring busing as a last resort to desegregate schools that are unconstitutionally segregated.
The Treasury Department appropriations bill is saddled with two amendments both amied at preserving the tax-exempt status of segregation academies - the private schools created as havens for whites fleeing desegregated public schools These and other similar amendments would make it difficult or impossible for the federal government to act m compliance with federal court orders or to implement its own regulations, without which many of the civil rights laws would be meaningless.
No one really has the guts to come right out and present a bill repealing the major civil rights laws It is unconscionable lo toy with minority rights and with constitutional guarantees in such an underhanded manner Sneaking through an amendment may be clever legislative tactics, but it erodes people"s confidence in government. m the promise of the still-fragile civil rights laws, and in the fairness of the legislative process. Sometimes, as in busing, the attackers claim lo speak for the majority. But they reveal a fundamental flaw in their argument - the essence of a democracy is protector of minority rights, not the unbridled tramping of those rights by an intolerant majority.
it would be a mistake to overreact to the threats to civil rights laws Many of those proposals will never see the light of day. and many don"t stand a chance, even m the current Congress. But it would be more of a mistake to be complacent about them. There is a clear and present danger that some of the rights and programs that Survived the negativism of the 1970s will come under even stronger attack in the 1930s it is imperative for progressive coalitions to be rebuilt and strengthened, and for strategics to be devised that will protect endangered rights A vital part of that effort will have to be - a campaign to rekindle the spark of passion m the disheartened civil rights camp.
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