Quote:
Originally posted by Munchkin03
I always heard the cry of "reverse discrimination" at the mouths of mediocre white males; never from anyone who was very succesful in their fields, and in turned blamed it on affirmative action.
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Well, consider this one. It happened in about 1972.
There was this young hotshot television director who was directing 6 and 11 news is a top forty market TV station, trying to move up in market size -- and thus in salary. He was considered by most to be the hottest director in the market.
He heard about a directing job in a top ten market -again directing 6 and 11 PM News -- and applied, was asked to come for an interview, did so and did not get the job. It went to a woman associate director with no directing experience. The hiring manager, who was embarassed, told him that he was told he had to hire a woman.
Of course that manager wouldn't dare say that today, because he would be in court in a heartbeat.
Anyway, later that same year, another job opened at the same top ten market station, and the same director was again invited up for an interview, and again, didn't get the job. This time it went to a young black assistant director with no directing experience. Again, the hiring manager explained the situation. He was told to hire a black director.
Two jobs. Two interviews. Two minority members with NO directing experience hired.
I think that's reverse discrimination.
I thought so then when I didn't get either of the jobs, too.
Interestingly enough, the discrimination isn't what made me unhappy -- there had been enough plain anti-minority discrimination in my industry for years and I figured what goes around comes around. What ticked me off is that the hiring manager knew before he invited me for the interviews that he couldn't hire me, and wasted two days of my life.
Now, it may be possible that I was a "mediocre white male," but I don't think so, and neither did the other stations (including top ten markets) who hired me later to direct everything from news to live sports to talk shows. Or the folks who offered jobs in Los Angeles and San Francisco which I didn't accept. I ended up directing everything from a Papal Mass to NFL Football on NBC to the opening ceremonies for the US Olympic Opening Ceremony. I have eight EMMY Awards. I also taught diversity classes (as a Native American) for NBC and was a hiring manager for over twenty years -- fifteen of them at an NBC owned TV station. I taught TV production at the college level.
So, my point is that to say that only "mediocre white males" are the victims of reverse discrimination is an insult to a lot of people.
Fortunately, I don't insult easily. I only tell the story to make a point. Reverse discrimination is real.
Don't even ask me about trying to find a meaningful job past 50 years old...