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Stories Posted on April 15, 2008
Affirmative Action is Target of Missouri Petition Drive
Category: Affirmative Action · State: Missouri · Source: The Kansas City Star
To get contracts with Kansas City government, a company must make a good-faith effort at sharing the contract with businesses owned by minorities or women. To Bill Torres, a Hispanic owner of an engineering consulting business, that requirement forces companies to do the right thing: Share the pie with businesspeople often discriminated against in a world dominated by white men. But to opponents of affirmative action, the requirement is itself a form of discrimination they want to eliminate. The battle over affirmative action programs like the city’s has moved front and center. Missouri residents heading to the store or going to the polls on Tuesday may find themselves being asked to sign a petition aimed at changing the Missouri Constitution to prohibit state-related affirmative action programs.