Written by Ainsley Jackman
Amid a resurgence of the affirmative action debate and new proposals to end its 1996 ban in California, former Governor Pete Wilson’s legacy is being called into question as he joins the ranks of Republicans now dubbed “racist” by their Democrat counterparts.
These accusations are primarily based on his actions around three policies enacted during his term on affirmative action, bilingual education, and public benefits for illegal immigrants.
Wilson opposed affirmative action throughout his career because it explicitly prejudices based on race—which some identify as racism in and of itself—and he felt that targeting people for benefits based purely on race and/or sex was both inefficient and unfair. He led the effort to ban such discriminatory practice in California in 1996 through Proposition 209, a move some have claimed is “widely viewed as racist,” despite the fact that it was actually outlawed by 55% voters statewide.
He also opposed bilingual education due to concerning trends of schools producing students who weren’t fluent in English, a move that is also now being criticized as “racist.” This seems especially backwards considering that English fluency benefits immigrants specifically by ensuring they are not handicapped without an understanding of the country’s primary language. This legislation was, unfortunately, overturned in 2016.
But perhaps Wilson’s most controversial move was his support for Prop 187, which prevented illegal immigrants from accessing public services such as school and welfare. When legislation like this is called “racist,” one seriously begins to wonder if Democrats actually know what the word means or just hurl it at as slur toward anyone they disagree with.
Wilson and his allies made it abundantly clear numerous times that it was not any dislike for a race itself that drove the move—which would be irrational and uncharacteristic—but care for struggling Americans forgoing aid they had a legal right to because illegal immigrants, regardless of their race or national origin, were benefiting from state resources. According to Wilson, “Every time I have ever challenged [critics] to find one word that could be construed as racism in the campaign for 187, they have been unable to do so.” And actually, most Californians agreed with him, passing Prop 187 with 59% of the vote.
Although it’s clear that none of these accusations stand on stable ground, Wilson has been maligned like countless Republicans before him and been labeled “racist” by his detractors. If they want to be taken seriously, his accusers must stick to a consistent and real definition of the term. In the meantime, we can applaud Governor Pete Wilson for his work while in office and hope for another governor like him in the near future.
