Hernandez: More discussion needed on affirmative action
SACRAMENTO -- State Sen. Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina) portrayed Monday the shelving of his amendment to overturn the state’s ban on affirmative action in higher education as an attempt to defuse the increasingly heated backlash the proposal has generated in recent weeks.
“Given the scare tactics and misinformation used by certain groups opposed to SCA 5, we felt it was necessary to have a discussion based on facts and take the time to hear from experts on the challenges our public universities and colleges face with regards to diversity, as well as the implications for California’s workforce and our overall competitiveness in a global economy,” Hernandez told reporters at the Capitol.
Hernandez’s proposal passed the Senate in January, but has since attracted intense opposition from some Asian Americans, particularly Chinese Americans.
Speaker John A. Pérez (D-Los Angeles) announced Monday morning the measure that would alter Proposition 209 would be put on pause, and the Legislature would form a task force to examine the issue.
Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Los Angeles) said he looked forward to a “serious and sober examination of affirmative action.”
“We need a calm and intelligent discussion about what affirmative action is and is not. Affirmative action is not quotas. I am deeply concerned anytime one ethnic group turns on another,” Steinberg said in a statement.
Hernandez said the scare tactics falsely claimed the change would result in quotas.
“This is not about a quota system,” he said. He said it is about providing equal opportunity to the “best and brightest.”
Hernandez said he supports forming a commission to take testimony.
“I’m going to slow it down so every concern is heard,” Hernandez said.
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