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I read with eager anticipation the Aug. 9 Rocky Mountain News article that whites had become a minority in Denver (“A majority of none”). I have watched how the mayor and City Council have crafted contracts — for work within the City and County of Denver — that created everything from mandates and set-asides to affirmative action programs for minority contractors doing business with the city. All this in an attempt to level the playing field and achieve parity and equality for minority contractors.
However, I’m wondering what parity actually is. Is it 50 percent? Is it some convoluted calculated percentage based on population?
Anyway, now that I’m a minority contractor, when will the mayor and City Council revise the contracting procedures to establish goals for white contractors?

Bob Watters, Westminster

READER COMMENTS

Bob, only when you can prove 51% white. One little drop of American Indian blood and you can kiss the special treatment afforded your downtrodden group good-by.

You will need to go back six generations to be sure all 32 parts of your inheritance are white. That is 32 people to account for. Good luck.

Forget getting any status as a minority for work. EOE is supposed to keep the playing field level. However anyone who has common sense knows it is a quata system that excludes whites. Now that whites are in the minority you will see minority laws go buy the way side.

Let's keep pushing and find out how long affirmative action can stand on it's already shaky premise.

So now that whites are in the minority wouldn't it be racial discrimination to apply Affirmative Action programs. I smell another class action lawsuit coming down the pike. It's past time for AA to die.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but the fact that a majority aren't white doesn't mean that a plurality aren't white..

AA has used dicrimination to try to fix discrimination. There has to be a better way.

Sharon B. How wrong you are about my abilty to prove my "whiteness". I can prove it. I am a first generation North American, born in Canada. Both of my parents were born in Northern Ireland, and their families go back in Northern Ireland for generations or as far as can be traced. No American Indian blood that I'm aware of.

For heavens sake I was joking. I`m some Irish too.

Fixing discrimination wrongs, ironically, creates descrimination only because of blind over fixing by legislators without regard to the ultimate results. Political expediency driven by zealousness often results in such absurdity.One would think that legislators would learn from history but one tends to forget that to the exclusion of all else, their primary job is set aside in favor of their self defined job which is to get reelected.

Charles B--- What?

I was wondering the same thing, Mr. Campbell.

I would have thought caucasians were a minority YEARS ago in Denver. Colorado on the other hand is still a majorally a caucasian state although that is changing fast with the unresolved immigration problems.

If AA is going to stick around it needs to be fixed. Did you know if Bill Gates was a minority even though he is a trillionaire he would be given jobs that a poor white person would not.

My apologies to Sharon. I didn't notice the tongue in cheek.I was only thinking of pretend Indians -like Ward Churchill, not having to prove anything to anybody to enjoy their preferential treatment.

While "whites" may have fallen from a statistical majority to the largest plurality in population numbers, there is no comparison when is comes to political or economic power. In those ares "white" still and will continue to be the dominate power for a long time.

My new favorite term is "minority majority."

Now that we're in the minority I can say "I'm tied of the man keeping me down."

"Whites" are not a minority... they are still far and away the biggest racial group. Just because less than 1 our of every 2 people in Denver is not white is meaningless.

Bob waters, my family is from Bray, Ireland near Dublin.

Sometimes, Irish humor is hard to spot, you know like the little people.

doug -
Power has nothing to do with it. The word is EQUALITY and it goes BOTH ways.

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