Positive Discrimination to Increase Representation of Women and Ethnic Minorities - Essay Example

This has prompted calls for measures to address the disparity. The Labour Party in 1997 won the elections and a record number of women members entered parliament through candidate lists that were exclusively made of women (Labour Party, 2008: p.46). There have been arguments that a similar thing, defined as positive discrimination or affirmative action, should also happen for ethnic minorities and should be expanded for women (Anderson, 2014: p.22). The prejudice against women and ethnic minorities in representation is undisputed and positive discrimination represents the best way to redress the disparity in the short term.

Today, there exists a vicious circle in which ethnic minorities and women prefer not to stand for elections, due to prejudicial attitudes against them (Pincus, 2013: p.27). Positive discrimination is the best way to encourage them to run for office and, if one or two generations are allowed to run through positive discrimination, this would push forward the agenda and need not be a permanent measure. Some argue that the coming generations need role models, rather than individuals running for election to make up the numbers, especially claiming that ethnic minorities and women are capable of election without help from male colleagues (Cohen et al, 2007: p.38). However, given the prevalent institutional racism and sexism in the UK, for example, it would be very difficult for women in these groups to make it past the selection committee.

Implementing positive discrimination for elective posts would also enable ethnic minorities and women to speak on issues that only they can, such as workplace inequalities and the family (Mosley & Capaldi, 2011: p.40). These topics are still seen as being of less importance to the more preferred foreign and economic policies. By using positive discrimination, more ethnic minorities and women will be elected, encouraging social policy debate. Opponents of this strategy contend that even where female politicians are elected to public offices, such as Angela Merkel and Margaret Thatcher, they still deal with topics that are traditionally male (Daye, 2011: p.42). The same can be said of President Obama, who has to deal with topics traditionally important to white leaders. However, the only way to ensure that social issues are tackled will be to ensure there are more ethnic minorities and women in elected positions, rather than just a few, to push the agenda more.

Finally, it is vital that all parts of the population in representative democracies, the UK included, are represented proportionately and accurately (Leiter & Leiter, 2012: p.25). A lack of ethnic minorities and women in elected positions is indicative of a patriarchal and prejudiced society, particularly as women make up over half of the UK’s population, although their representation is only at 20% (Mitra, 2010: p.55). For there to be a truly representative government for the people and by the people, the number of ethnic minorities and women must be increased to mirror the composition of society fairly. Opponents of positive discrimination argue that it is impossible to reflect the demographics of society fairly in a representative democracy because the system is about the representation of competing interests in society, rather than demographics (Edwards, 2009: 53). However, this is not entirely true because ethnic minorities and women also represent specific interests in society and need to be represented for reasons of fairness and justice.

In conclusion, the prejudicial nature of society against women and ethnic minorities necessitates the use of positive discrimination to ensure that the disparity in representation against the two groups is addressed. The fact that most of them are unwilling to run for election due to prejudicial attitudes against them, that they are the only groups, which can prioritize social issues over traditional ones, and that there is a minimal proportionate and accurate representation of societal demographics, means; positive discrimination is the only way to ensure that women and ethnic minorities are well represented.