You may already know that electoral districts at various levels of government are sometimes drawn in an attempt to ensure that members of certain races will be elected to office in those districts. That is wrong, of course, because elections ought to be colorblind and not geared toward ensuring a certain outcome.
But we were saddened to see how that “rigging” of elections has percolated down even to the level of some public schools.
The school district in Lee County, Miss., tried to guarantee “equality” in how students were represented in class offices. How did it do that? It declared that only black students could run for certain class offices one year, and only white students could run for those offices the next year.
Of course, in its attempt to promote racial equality, the district wound up promoting racial division. It sent students the message that it is OK to restrict fundamental rights in order to pursue a particular social goal.
The district’s bad policy came to light when a woman complained that her children did not happen to fit either of the “approved” racial categories to seek class offices. Her sixth-grade daughter had tried to run for class reporter but was forbidden to do so because she was of the “wrong” race.
After a public uproar, the district fortunately dropped its wrongheaded policy. Now, students may run for any office they like without having to be the “right” race.
But the case highlights the kind of mischief that government can create when it tries to guarantee certain racial outcomes rather than simply promote “equal justice for all.”