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The
French-American Foundation Policy Program on
“Equality of Opportunity in
Education and Employment: French and American Perspectives”
Program Description
In
2006, the French-American Foundation launched a major new social policy program
on French and American strategies to reduce
the impact of discrimination and promote greater opportunity for minority and
immigrant populations. This program focuses particularly on education and
employment, critical policy vehicles for social integration.
As
with previous social policy programs, our goal is to
engage
key decision-makers and opinion leaders on a pressing issue of common concern in
France and the United States, as well as to produce a significant impact on
public debates and policy in both countries.
In its first year this program has received major initial funding from
the Ford Foundation, with support also provided by the Florence Gould
Foundation. Additional financing is being sought for program initiatives in
development.
Why this issue? Why now?
France and the United States share a belief in equality for all citizens.
Yet, despite efforts by both countries, equality of opportunity remains elusive
for many minorities and immigrants. Recent events – including Hurricane
Katrina in the United States in 2005, and the riots which broke out a few months
later in largely immigrant metropolitan areas across France have fueled national debates about how best to address entrenched inequalities
and counter discrimination.
We
believe there is now a window for policy innovation. In France, the recent
creation of a new government agency, the Independent High Commission for Equality and
Against Discrimination (HALDE), demonstrates the government’s commitment to
address ethnic-based social inequalities and discrimination. Key French business
leaders have taken the lead by creating a Diversity Charter for French
employers. On a wider scale, the European Union has ranked the rights to
equal treatment as one of its top priorities, making 2007 the “European Year
of the Equal Opportunities for All,” and has instructed all member States to
devise effective anti-discrimination policies.
Conversely, in the United States, major achievements of the civil rights
movement such as affirmative action and school desegregation have been reversed
by a series of Supreme Court decisions and state ballot initiatives since the
1990s.
In
this context, a French-American dialogue can inform new strategies under
consideration. French decision-makers are debating the use of racial and ethnic
statistics, banned under French law, and asking whether new
affirmative
action policies (discrimination positive) can be adapted to the
“color-blind” French model. Meanwhile, some U.S. states are abandoning
race-based strategies in favor of an area-based approach that resembles certain
French policies. At a time of active policy debate and reform, and given the
contrasting approaches to affirmative action, pro-diversity initiatives, and the
use of racial and ethnic statistics, this is an opportune moment for
French-American exchange on these topics.
Program initiatives
The
goals of this program are to facilitate a French-American dialogue about
effective policy approaches in education and employment, inform public
debates, and influence policy making through evidence-based research and
informed recommendations.
The
French-American Foundation has ensured program participation of representatives
at the highest level of civil rights organizations and government agencies
(NAACP-LDF, American Civil Liberties Union, and Leadership Conference on Civil
Rights in the U.S.; HALDE, National Institute for Demographic Studies, and
Representative Council of Black Associations in France, among others) as well as
specialized scholars and experts.
Concrete
initiatives of the “Equality of Opportunity” program so far include:
-
An
inaugural two-day seminar on “Equality of Opportunity: French and American
Perspectives on Education and Employment” (November 13-14, 2006)
with selected French and American scholars and policymakers. To
read the seminar summary,
click here.
Photos of the
inaugural seminar
Kimberlé
Crenshaw and Valérie Amiraux
Roundtable
panelists
Daniel Sabbagh,
Kimberlé Crenshaw, Patrick Weil, and Joël Vallat.
To listen to the roundtable
discussion recording, Click here for part 1
To listen to the
roundtable discussion recording, Click here for part 2
To read some press coverage
about this roundtable,
click
here
- A public
discussion with Justin Vaïsse about his new book, Integrating Islam:
Political and Religious Challenges in Contemporary France (February 13,
2007)
Proposed
next steps
A study tour and
report on the “percentage plans” introduced in state university systems
in several
U.S.
states, including
Texas
and
California , to increase student diversity.
Similar
plans – inspired by the American example, and sometimes referred to as
“filières d’excellence” - have been proposed by French policymakers,
and our goal is to identify lessons learned from the U.S. experience which
could inform the design of a French percentage plan
A U.S. study
tour for a French delegation to examine (1) the legal framework of
anti-discrimination law in the U.S.; (2) the role of civil rights
organizations in defending minority and immigrant rights; and (3) academic
research on discrimination, and on anti-discrimination policies
The creation of
a “toolkit” (in French) about successful approaches used by American
businesses to eliminate discrimination and increase employee diversity, for
distribution to French employers and business organizations
A
scholar-in-residence program abroad for a legal scholar or civil rights
litigator specializing in anti-discrimination law
Special issue
publications in several peer-reviewed journals, including
French
Politics, Culture, and Society, and
Sociétés Contemporaines
Resource center
List of presentations and articles related to
the “Equality of Opportunity” seminar (November 13-14, 2006)
Biographies of participants in “Equality of
Opportunity” seminar
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