Affirmative Action “victim” from the Gratz v. Bollinger case, Jennifer Gratz is accusing BAMN/Revolutionary Works League organizer Luke Massie with threatening her with a knife. Having failed in the courts, Gratz is currently heading an effort to ban affirmative action through a ballot initiative. Whether or not there’s any truth to the story, it underscores the tendancy of RWL members to engage in tense, direct personal confrontation. Luke’s tried the same intimidation tactics on me and some of my friends, and it’s yet another reason no mainstream political organization should work with him or his organization – physical intimidation and confrontation are not acceptable organizing tactics.
DetNews: “Police investigate alleged threat to affirmative action foe“
“intimidation tactics”, I think you mean. …He pulled a knife on you or something? Just curious.
No, he just gets in your face.
I write to correct an error in your post. In your post of June 15, you wrote, “Having failed in the courts, Gratz is currently heading an effort to ban affirmative action through a ballot initiative.”
Ms. Gratz did not fail in the courts. She won her case. The United State Supreme Court held that the University of Michigan undergraduate admissions program discriminated against Ms. Gratz and thousands like her. Gratz v. Bollinger. 539 US 244 (2003). The Court ruled in Ms. Gratz’ favor 6-3. Not even close, really.
While you’re correct the court ruled in Ms. Gratz favor and struck down the specific policy for undergraduates at the University of Michigan, in the companion case Grutter V. Bollinger, 539 U.S. 306 (2003) the court upheld the constitutionality of affirmative action.
This was my point: having failed to end affirmative action through the courts, Gratz, Connerly, and their supporters have turned to the ballot initiative.
Perhaps one should look at Ms. Gratz’ efforts to end affirmative action in Michigan as accepting an invitation issued by the U.S. Supreme Court in the Grutter case. This is probably the most consciously ignored passage in that case:
“Universities in California, Florida, and Washington State, where racial preferences in admissions are prohibited by state law, are currently engaged in experimenting with a wide variety of alternative approaches. Universities in other States can and should draw on the most promising aspects of these race-neutral alternatives as they develop.”
Seems Ms. Gratz and company want Michigan to join the ranks of the experimenters.