This was a good week to observe typical top-of-the-hierarchy responses to people in lower groups who dare to try to move outside their dictated roles or challenge the views of those on top. A nudge from lower groups to participate equally feels like a steam roller to those on top. Crumbs given to lower groups in a hierarchy is perceived as a mountain of advantages, even if the top has routinely and unceremoniously received multitudes more.
First example – Senator Tom Coburn cluelessly implied that being an African-American male gives you a big advantage in the United States. Coburn told a townhall meeting in Oklahoma that Obama’s views are “goofy and wrong,” and that the president wants to “create dependency” because “as an African-American male,” he had received “tremendous benefit” from government programs.
Then there's the "Blade Runner" Oscar Pistorius, who recovered from his traditional slow start to qualify for the semifinals at the world championships in South Korea, the 14th best of all competitors. Initially the International Association of Athletics Federations had banned the multiple Paralympic gold medalist from able-bodied competition, saying the blades he wears gave him an unfair advantage. But in 2008, Pistorius was cleared to compete by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
These "advantage" statements by those on the top of hierarchies remind us of the case of golfer Casey Martin, who lives in our city of Eugene, Oregon. The Professional Golfers' Association (PGA), along with the likes of golfing giants Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer, argued that Martin would have an advantage if he used a cart. Martin has a disability, called Klippel-Trenaunay-Weber syndrome, a degenerative disorder than causes his veins to rupture and fill the cavities around his tibia with blood which makes it impossible for him to walk the course. "I've missed four out of eight cuts and made $5,000 this year," he said, "so if there's an advantage, I'd like to know where it is." The case went to the U.S. Supreme Court who ruled in Casey's favor.
Read more:
African-American males:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/21/opinion/dowd-of-dystopias-and-alphas.htm
l?_r=1&ref=maureendowd
Pistorius:
http://www.registerguard.com/web/sports/26782275-41/pistorius-h
eat-semifinals-final-seconds.html.csp
Martin:
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,128734,00.html#ixzz
1WXZiF3RA
