Part I: Gerald Reynolds; Part II: Charles T. Canady

Racial-preference policies are counterproductive, contend the authors of the following two-part viewpoint. In Part I, Gerald Reynolds argues that racial preferences often grant rewards to underqualified minorities and ultimately work against minority progress. Reynolds, an attorney, is a senior fellow at the Center for New Black Leadership in Washington, D.C. In Part II, Florida Republican representative Charles T. Canady contends that racial preferences are a form of government-imposed discrimination that should be abandoned. He maintains that the purpose of preferences was to eliminate the effects of racism, but they have served only to emphasize racial distinctions and intensify racial divisiveness.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. In Reynolds’s opinion, what factors stand in the way of black progress?
2. How...