Sure. The Labour Party running AWS in the late 1990s and early 00s. Now, I don’t disagree with the outcome, but I do disagree with the methodology. Solved the problem but hasn’t led to the Labour left getting a single female party leader. Meanwhile the Lib Dem’s, the greens and the snp have had one and the Tories have had 3 female Prime Ministers.

Meanwhile the Grutter vs Bollinger (2003) case is coming up for its 25 year mark so we shall see if it holds up under scrutiny. Once again, I don’t disagree with the end point, but I do disagree with the methodology. I think it does damage to the way society functions.

And closer to home here in the U.K, the arts and theatre in particular has a disproportionately high number of plays by people from the trans-community. Last time I checked there were five plays from this community running concurrently. The incidence of trans people is 1% to the population overall. Chances of finding the small population of small population who can write at a professional standard shouldn’t be that high. However, much easier to suggest you want X number of plays by Y group in any given season. What is this if it is not equality of outcome? And here is pretty much the same memo from within the BBC…. https://www.bbc.co.uk/diversity/reports/bame-career-progression-and-culture-report/

I don’t like equality of outcome because I think it creates a two tier system for the disadvantged group. I think it leaves room for racists and misogynists to say - you didn’t get here by your own merit. I would prefer to fire all the white people and old boys who do the selecting and ensure diversity across the selection process. If you can demonstrate a selection process is free from bias then you provide equality of opportunity rather than outcome whoever gets in gets in on merit alone and there’s no nepotism and no social engineering. Might take longer, but a far better methodology.

Also tends to allow genuine social progress rather than selective social progress. At the moment the chosen voices for marginalised groups tend to be those members of said group who shared a boarding school education with the middle class white person doing the selecting.

Always nice to see you pop up, apologies for the lack of responses. The significant other penguin and I are on holiday at the moment. :o)