Our earned media effort was phenomenal, and every major newspaper in California, with the exception of Orange County, opposed Prop. 209. On the same day, Gov. Pete Wilson issued an executive order calling for its immediate implementation. Legal experts predict that the courts will take some time sorting out the legal questions behind Prop. 209. NOW President Patricia Ireland , Jackson and other affirmative action advocates met with White House officials after the election to discuss the administration's commitment to defending and practicing affirmative action and to enforcing vigorously existing equal opportunity laws. In the meantime, activists are keeping a high level of energy fighting for affirmative action and equal opportunity.
Protests continue on California campuses.
Activists are stepping up efforts to identify discriminatory practices. Coalitions that resulted in a serious collaboration among feminists, civil rights leaders, students, labor and more, remain intact. The passage of Prop. 209, however, doesn't mean that it is a successful wedge issue on which conservatives can gain political strength. The California Republican party paid to get the proposition on the ballot when other efforts fell through. Rep. Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., and Wilson met with business leaders and said Prop. 209 could help Republicans get elected to Congress and also help Republicans keep their ajority in the California Assembly.