LOS ANGELES COUNTY : Burke Urges Opposition to Anti-Affirmative Action Bid
Los Angeles County Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke asked her colleagues Tuesday to oppose a move by state legislators to scrap affirmative action programs.
“As early as 1960,” she said, “this board recognized that county employment opportunities were not open to all its citizens, and implemented various actions to increase women and minority participation.
“These policies have continued regardless of the political or ideological makeup of this board,” Burke said.
Burke, the first African American on the Board of Supervisors, introduced a motion calling for the panel to oppose Assembly Constitutional Amendment No. 2. The amendment would bar the state, counties and cities from outlawing affirmative action programs, Burke said.
She asked the panel to go on record and “reaffirm its commitment to affirmative action,” and to direct the county’s lobbyists in Sacramento to oppose the amendment. She also wants the board to send letters to the governor and legislators expressing opposition to the amendment. The board is scheduled to consider Burke’s motion next Tuesday.
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