The most qualified candidate
I'm just turned on the hearing at the Department of Building Inspections Commission to listen to the item on choosing the next director of DBI. Last week, the proverbial shit hit the fan when some RBA members came out swinging against Amy Lee and made some unfortunate and sexist remarks about her pregnancy and her qualifications to be Director of the Department of Building Inspections.
Sample Speaker
One speaker, who seems to be representative of the RBA, is saying that what the papers said about the last hearing is a lie. He is saying that he doesn't know either of the candidates, Hutchinson or Lee, but he thinks Hutchinson is the most qualified candidate. The pitch today by RBA members so far seems to be that any critiques of sexism are not fair and that really all they want is the most qualified candidate.
And this is why we shouldn't have repealed affirmative action. In my experience, straight white men generally think straight white men are the most qualified.
The University of California took a step in the right direction this weekend. On Saturday, UC Berkeley greeted new chancellor Robert Birgeneau, a steadfast supporter of Affirmative Action. He generated some controversy when he acknowledged that numbers of African American and Latino students are dropping.
And from his remarks, we can gather that he is pro-labor as well. On Saturday, he argued that service workers of the UC system should have a living wage. UC service workers were on a one day strike last week over their wages.
I guess what I find so problematic about this hearing is how the qualifications issue is being used against a woman of color. The speakers sound very scripted and they keep saying over and over again that Amy Lee is unqualified and that she is the Mayor's pick. Well are they using the qualifications issue because she is the Mayor's pick? In my humble opinion, yes. As a woman of color, she is more vulnerable because of institutional racism and sexism to the argument that she is not qualified. But the real reason that RBA members oppose her is that they think she is the Mayor's pick. If she wasn't the so-called Mayor's pick, would they be making this argument? I don't think so.
Sample Speaker
One speaker, who seems to be representative of the RBA, is saying that what the papers said about the last hearing is a lie. He is saying that he doesn't know either of the candidates, Hutchinson or Lee, but he thinks Hutchinson is the most qualified candidate. The pitch today by RBA members so far seems to be that any critiques of sexism are not fair and that really all they want is the most qualified candidate.
And this is why we shouldn't have repealed affirmative action. In my experience, straight white men generally think straight white men are the most qualified.
The University of California took a step in the right direction this weekend. On Saturday, UC Berkeley greeted new chancellor Robert Birgeneau, a steadfast supporter of Affirmative Action. He generated some controversy when he acknowledged that numbers of African American and Latino students are dropping.
And from his remarks, we can gather that he is pro-labor as well. On Saturday, he argued that service workers of the UC system should have a living wage. UC service workers were on a one day strike last week over their wages.
I guess what I find so problematic about this hearing is how the qualifications issue is being used against a woman of color. The speakers sound very scripted and they keep saying over and over again that Amy Lee is unqualified and that she is the Mayor's pick. Well are they using the qualifications issue because she is the Mayor's pick? In my humble opinion, yes. As a woman of color, she is more vulnerable because of institutional racism and sexism to the argument that she is not qualified. But the real reason that RBA members oppose her is that they think she is the Mayor's pick. If she wasn't the so-called Mayor's pick, would they be making this argument? I don't think so.
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