I somewhat agree with Carl Seidman in his letter "Poor, not minorities, should be rewarded." (SN 7/10).

I agree the government should provide relief to poverty stricken communities and work toward bettering education, which is the primary source of inequality.

But I disagree with Seidman in the aspect I still believe affirmative action is very necessary.

This is because diversity is extremely important and affirmative action's goal is to promote it, not force it (as so many people believe it does). The quota system was outlawed in the 1978 Bakke decision by the Supreme Court. That's why affirmative action survived and the point system was declared unconstitutional.

It is the nation's responsibility to make sure the socio-economic status between the races improves rather than worsens. If affirmative action didn't exist, we would find ourselves surrounded with more problems, more tension and ultimately more racism. When we promote diversity, these problems start to fade away and we get closer toward equality.

In response to the editorial "Ballot action" (SN 7/10), the only reason why the American Civil Rights Coalition wants to put affirmative action on the ballot is solely to eliminate it.

By living up north in a white neighborhood and going to an all white school, I was exposed to a lot of racism. That's the reason I chose to come to MSU - for diversity.

It's utterly sad how ignorant so many people can be.

I can't go to the bar there without hearing racial slurs or derogatory jokes with minorities at the butt of them all. It's rather disgusting and I'm ashamed to invite my friends that happen to be minorities to my hometown for that reason.

Racism is very alive here. We live in a very white state. I would say that the majority of white people oppose affirmative action (not to say though, that the majority of whites are racist). It just seems to be the trend I've noticed.

Every time I have ever gotten into a debate about affirmative action with any of my white friends, they are almost always against it and there has never been a way for me to have them grasp the benefits.

If affirmative action is put on the ballot, it will most definitely fail. I hope it never comes to that, though, because it will inhibit social mobility and increase racial problems.

I strongly suggest to anyone who opposes affirmative action to research and realize the problem and then do what they think is right to help alleviate the problem.

Andrew Handrich
telecommunication, information studies and media senior