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I don't want to play the race card.

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  • I don't want to play the race card.

    But it seems it would be appropriate.

    I'm moving today from transitional housing to section 8 project based permanent housing. Some of you may know, there are programs that exist to 'pledge' money to apartment complexes and stuff for the high move-in costs associated with moving for low-income residents, like myself.

    When I inquired about getting documentation so I could raise pledges for my move, I was told that the apartment complex does not accept pledges. Fair enough. A little weird, because I've never heard of a project-based complex NOT accommodating low-income people in that way, but hey, fair enough.

    THEN, the story was "Oh, we accept pledges, but they have to be faxed to us and the organization must give you a check to bring to us before you can sign the lease." Alriiiiight. Organizations don't work that way. They don't give ME the money. They're pledging it to YOU on MY behalf.

    So I called the organization I was looking for help from directly, and they told me they worked with Rasputin* at J.C. Apartments all the time, and he knows how pledges work and he just accepted one from them.

    The woman at the organization then asked me an odd question. She asked me my last name. I told her, and she asked if it was of hispanic origin. I confirmed that yes, I am hispanic.

    She replied, 'Ah. I'll have my manager call him and I'll call you back.'

    I suspect, maybe unfairly, that Rasputin has a reputation for discriminating against hispanic residents.

    I sign the lease (if he lets me after cause so much trouble) in less than two hours. If he so much as tries to delay my move in by one day, I'm taking it to his superiors.

    *Name changed.

    P.S. If I am wrong and this is all a misunderstanding, trust me, I will be relieved and I will let the subject drop. I would prefer to be misunderstanding the situation than to move into an apartment complex with a discriminating landlord.

    ETA: If it turns out that I have a case for discrimination, should I roll with it? What should I seek? I don't want money, and I don't want to cost someone their job. I don't want to make things with my new landlord more tense than they have to be. I don't want to be THAT person who takes something to court for something trivial...

    I am conflicted on the what ifs.
    Last edited by SorryIsGoodEnough; 02-08-2010, 08:46 PM.

  • #2
    Originally posted by SorryIsGoodEnough View Post
    ETA: If it turns out that I have a case for discrimination, should I roll with it? What should I seek? I don't want money, and I don't want to cost someone their job. I don't want to make things with my new landlord more tense than they have to be. I don't want to be THAT person who takes something to court for something trivial...

    I am conflicted on the what ifs.
    That pretty much makes it a non case cuz you don't want any of the things that you would be seeking and/or receiving if you made a case of it.
    Jack Faire
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    • #3
      But at the same time, I don't want someone in a position of power over low income residents of any minority to be allowed to remain in power if they're gonna be discriminatory.

      Also, I meant that it's not my GOAL to receive a large sum of money as a result of this. If I take it to court, and I get a judgment in my favor, and it sends a message to King County Housing Authority to keep a closer eye on their employees, I suppose that would be alright. My point is: I'm not bringing race into it for just MY benefit.

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      • #4
        Originally posted by SorryIsGoodEnough View Post
        But at the same time, I don't want someone in a position of power over low income residents of any minority to be allowed to remain in power if they're gonna be discriminatory.

        Also, I meant that it's not my GOAL to receive a large sum of money as a result of this. If I take it to court, and I get a judgment in my favor, and it sends a message to King County Housing Authority to keep a closer eye on their employees, I suppose that would be alright. My point is: I'm not bringing race into it for just MY benefit.
        My point is that your going to cost someone their job. Period they can't go through a case like that and then be, "Oh sorry we won't let him do that again" he will be fired to show they will take action,.
        Jack Faire
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        • #5
          Originally posted by jackfaire View Post
          My point is that your going to cost someone their job. Period they can't go through a case like that and then be, "Oh sorry we won't let him do that again" he will be fired to show they will take action,.
          that, and if I may be the heartless bastard that I am... if the guy truly is discriminating then he deserves to be fired... there is bound to be someone else out there looking for a job who is willing to do it properly.
          "I'm Gar and I'm proud" -slytovhand

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          • #6
            Often times affirmative action makes it so organizations can't accept people of certain races and maybe he was confused based off of that.

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            • #7
              Originally posted by elsporko View Post
              Often times affirmative action quotas makes it so organizations can't accept people of certain races and maybe he was confused based off of that.
              fixed it for you.
              Yes, quotas are often times part of affirmative action, but they are not a required part of AA and should not discredit some of the good things that AA has done.
              "I'm Gar and I'm proud" -slytovhand

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              • #8
                Thats like saying we shouldn't let murders and attempted race wars discredit all the good things Charles Manson has done. A very little bit of good doesn't count if it is mostly evil.

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by elsporko View Post
                  Thats like saying we shouldn't let murders and attempted race wars discredit all the good things Charles Manson has done. A very little bit of good doesn't count if it is mostly evil.
                  Your right we should ban hammers.
                  Jack Faire
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                  • #10
                    No, we should ban discrimination.

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                    • #11
                      Originally posted by elsporko View Post
                      No, we should ban discrimination.
                      My point was people are people laws are tools. If you don't like something lobby humans to agree it's a bad tool because people are abusing it.
                      Jack Faire
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                      • #12
                        I agree, affirmative action should be banned

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                        • #13
                          I wouldn't go so far to say ban affirmative action. Massively reform, yes, ban, no.
                          There is one thing that very few people will argue against on affirmative action, and that is that people are allowed (and in some cases required) to look at both qualifications and applicants background (I'm referring of course primarily to school admissions and financial aid).
                          Which is more impressive, the person who got a 3.8 and took 2 AP classes their senior year or the person who took no AP classes and got a 3.6?
                          Sounds simple, but what if I said the second person was from a low income area, his school didn't even offer AP classes so he never had that oppurtunity and during school he worked 25 hours a week (the maximum for students where i grew up) to support his family, while the first student came from a high wealth area, did not have to work and had a family that paid for him to have private tutoring.
                          Considering that, the second person's achievement, while looking at more than just numbers, seems a lot more impressive.

                          eta
                          Originally posted by elsporko View Post
                          No, we should ban discrimination.
                          at this rate I may actually have to like you
                          The problem is that no one can agree what discrimination is much less how to correct it.
                          Last edited by smileyeagle1021; 02-10-2010, 03:28 PM.
                          "I'm Gar and I'm proud" -slytovhand

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                          • #14
                            Originally posted by smileyeagle1021 View Post
                            Which is more impressive, the person who got a 3.8 and took 2 AP classes their senior year or the person who took no AP classes and got a 3.6? [snip] Considering that, the second person's achievement, while looking at just numbers, seems a lot more impressive.
                            This is a bit OT, forgive me. But I wish that all public schools (and universities) would all get on the same page regarding GPA's. My high school had a +/- system. Many of my friends did not. They were able to take lots of AP classes, and I was not. Of course, much in the public K-12 system favors those who live in richer areas, since for whatever reason schools are partially funded according to income tax.

                            Quite frankly, I think the fact that you're getting college credit for an AP class is enough extra compensation. You shouldn't get "extra" GPA points, IMO. (You shouldn't get college credit in high school IMO either, but..yeah.)

                            But since every school has different systems and different places where they put +/- breaks....it makes the GPA a completely unreliable source of academic information. Which leaves mass standardized tests, like the ACT, SAT, GRE, etc.

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                            • #15
                              Originally posted by AdminAssistant View Post
                              (You shouldn't get college credit in high school IMO either, but..yeah.).
                              I am assuming your not including running start programs in that?


                              Programs where a Junior/Senior in high school finishes their first 2 years of college at the community college which also counts for highschool.
                              Jack Faire
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