by Irene Daniel
My formal education began in Florence, Arizona; the County Seat of Pinal County and 'The Cowboy Cradle of the Southwest.' It is home to the AZ State Prison, too many corporate prisons, the mighty Florence Gophers and the oldest youth rodeo in the nation. When I was growing up there, it was also home to a brand new school, built in the last years of the Eisenhower administration.
I had great teachers. I don't know how the Universe conspired to cause so many talented and dedicated teachers to be located there during the 1960s and 70s, but I am eternally grateful. I loved to read and made good grades and won the English Medal from Mrs. McGeehee in Jr. High. Anyone who knew Mrs. McGeehee would know that such an accomplishment was no small feat. These teachers helped me to lay an educational foundation that would later help me to earn scholarships, internships, externships, awards and myriad opportunities that were very competitive and not easy to attain.
In the mid-60s, federal money from the Great Society began to flow into our town. Being the County Seat and housing state, and that time federal, prisoners who were incorporated into the general population for funding purposes, our community leaders managed to get a lot of money flowing our way. This money was used for projects like HeadStart and Neighborhood Youth Corp, as well as other educational and community services for local residents. At this point, separating work and education into two distinct chapters of my life is difficult because I always worked and supported myself, as well as attending class, whether in Florence, at Mesa Community College, Phoenix College, Arizona State University or UCLA Law School.
For example, Headstart was my very first opportunity to volunteer for community service, as an assistant to the TA, a paid position held by my 16 year-old brother. I was 10. I learned that, no matter how miserable and without I felt, I always had something to offer to someone who needed exactly what I had to contribute. It was more than just baby-sitting for free for me. I learned how to give. So, would you call this education or work experience? The Great Society offered me so many of both.
Even though by the time I got to college, many of the successful Great Society projects had been abandoned, the foundations laid by President Johnson and put into action by Sargent Shriver had taken root enough to continue to encourage and support poor people and ethnic minorities, previously frozen out of American prosperity. The grants and scholarships awarded by various programs, including and especially Affirmative Action, made it possible for those first recipients to pave the way for the next wave of graduates, and so on and so on; Los Diablos de ASU a case in point.
Los Diablos de ASU is a Latino Scholarship Program founded by ASU Latino Alumni for Latino ASU students. It's founders included a number of Latinos, mostly Mexican-American Chicanos, who benefitted from the opportunities to get an education due to the Great Society's investments in their talents during the 1960s. As they began to harvest success for themselves, they were able to use their talents and experience to create more opportunities for those who would come later, like me. I am proud to say that I was one of the very first recipients of the very first scholarships awarded by Los Diablos de ASU. I owe those who came before me a debt of gratitude that I can only pay forward to those who come after me. Without The Great Society, there would have been much less opportunity for them to succeed, and in turn, for them to create opportunities for me.
When I was applying to law schools, UCLA was high on my list, as was Harvard. The confidence I gained from my experience and the honors I was achieving gave me the confidence to apply to Harvard Law School. I didn't get in, but their rejection letter was more encouraging than some of my acceptance letters, and there were several, including UCLA; which, as well you might imagine, was highly competitive.
One of the factors that made my application competitive was my support from the La Raza Law Students Association at UCLA. Before Ward Connerly and his ilk destroyed Affirmative Action in California, UCLA had an excellent Diversity Program. Their Admissions Committee at that time consisted of student representatives from not only La Raza, but also from the Black Law Students Association (BLSA), as well the Asian-Pacific Islander Law Student Association (APILSA); who had voting rights on the committee.
These law student organizations were permitted to review the applications of their respective ethnic groups and lobby the committee for the admission of those whom they felt were the most promising and most likely to contribute to their communities upon graduation. That's right -- these law students had a vote, an equal say to the Deans and scholars on that committee, regarding who they wanted joining their ranks. In order for these dedicated students to become familiar with the applicants, we were invited to come to UCLA for an interview with our respective student groups. Of course, I took advantage of every opportunity to increase my chances of admission, so I accepted the invitation. That was almost 30 years ago this month.
Can you imagine students so devoted to increasing diversity at UCLA that they poured over applications, sent out invitations and interviewed those who chose to participate, in order to effectively lobby for our admission to the entire committee? And a committee of the privileged who actually listened? Since that was the last year that UCLA permitted this practice, I did not have the opportunity to serve those admitted after 1987 in the same manner. What a shame.
I make no apologies for benefitting from Affirmative Action. In fact, I believe that overcoming poverty, racial prejudice and sexism prepared me for the study of law much better than a privileged lifestyle ever could. Moreover, I worked full-time all through college, and cared for my pre-school son, who was just learning to read at that time; an activity I prioritized in our home. I wonder if graduates of Choate would be able to do what I did to get to UCLA Law School. I know that I would have made it, had I their row to hoe. In fact, maybe I would have gotten into Harvard. Could they have mastered mine, however? Could they have navigated a world that was hostile to them with no resources but those one has to create for oneself with the help of others who understand those barriers erected so long ago?
Affirmative Action is not about lowering the rope for anyone. It is about affirming the efforts of those who have not had the privilege of living in a world designed by white males, for the success of white males. It is about recognizing and factoring in the subliminal racism and white male superiority that has been created here in the land of the free and the home of the brave. Whether overt, covert or subliminal, the long-term effects of legalized and institutionalized racism are still with us. Just look at the white backlash from electing an African-American President for the first time; which gave rise to the Tea Party and GOP efforts to suppress the votes of nonwhites because nonwhites know better than to support Republicans whose policies don't support nonwhites. Let's not pretend we're colorblind. We never have been because white people didn't want it that way from the very birth of our nation. Many of them still don't.
Having been admitted to law school, I still needed to make a living. Here again, the lines between work and education are blurred. Even though everyone told me not to, I had to work part-time all through law school, including my first year. I worked in the Law Placement Office, another public job, as the Public Interest Coordinator. After my first year of law school, I was awarded a stipend from the Public Interest Law Foundation (PILF) to work for the National Health Law Program (NHELP), for the summer. NHELP was funded by Legal Services Corporation, another of Sargent Shriver's great ideas that came out of The Great Society.
So you see, when I say that, for me, The Great Society, was the gift that just keeps on giving, I have all of these examples -- and more -- to demonstrate what those words really mean.
(Next week: My Professional Life)
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