Created Equal:
Analysis of Thaddeus Watulak's
"Affirmative Action Encourages Racism"
It was as if even I were being discriminated against as I read Mr. ThaddeusWatulak's
Essay on the relationship between affirmative action and discrimination. I had never actually
thought about the implications or the effects of such a policy before. Mr. Watulak angrily asserts
that affirmative action is most definatly a barrier to good relations between black and white
America. He asks the question, " How is affirmative action racist "(206), and then proceeds to
explain by appealing to the readers sense of right and wrong, by using many anecdotes, and by
considering the posiblity of affecting a reader who might be benifiting from affirmative action.
Watulak suggests that affirmative action must be discriminatory based simply on the
definition of discrimination itself - action or policies based on prejudice or partiality (206). This
is an excellent use of a resource to make his point, as he follow it up by attacking the founder of
this policy, the U.S.
government and the fact that our society is supposed to be based on
equality. His tone becomes an outrage at the insinuation that the white race should pay for
racial crimes commited by our ancestors. He states that, " No one alive today has ever been a
slave or owned a slave " (206), so why should we be punished. Watulak clearly believes that
these issues must be driving a gap into good race relations.
Mr. Watulak's use of anecdotes in his essay also give a strong support to his thesis.
Many times he uses these anecdotes to "paint a picture" for the reader. For example, he
explains that he will never understand why an "Old-money American family" of Hispanic
descent should recieve preferrence over a "dirt-poor", Australian immigrant. Through-out the...