FALLS CHURCH, Va. — Last week, the American Association for Affirmative Action held its 34th annual conference in the Washington, D.C., area in a bid to influence Capitol Hill policymakers during a pivotal election year. Diversity officers from governments, colleges and corporations heard from a number of prominent civil rights leaders including Urban League President Marc Morial, who said pressure to emphasize the importance of diversity must be brought to bear on whomever is elected president.

“Thinking very long and hard about what we want to see in the candidates — the one thing that is basic is that there must be a strong commitment to the enforcement of this nation’s civil rights laws,” Morial said.

He added that under the current administration, civil rights units of federal agencies have been stripped of their money and power, and “in some cases signals have been sent that these laws are not to be actively enforced.” Morial noted, “Populating the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division with people who are opposed to civil rights is an act of complete dishonor and disrespect. And I believe, fundamentally, that one of the most important commitments the next president can make, the next Congress can make — just enforce the rule of law.”

Also, Viola O. Baskerville, the secretary of administration for the state of Virginia and the second Black Cabinet official in Virginia’s history, emphasized the trailblazing diversity role of Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine (D), a former civil rights attorney.

“His philosophy of inclusiveness and integration has carried over to this philosophy that the face of government should reflect those that it is responsible for. His Cabinet and senior leadership are the most diverse in Virginia’s history,” she said. “Women decide procurement and finance issues throughout the state; women decide appointments and health and policy issues of the state.”

In the most notable conference session focusing on higher education diversity initiatives, University of Michigan Associate Vice Provost John Matlock and UM Office of Academic Multicultural Initiatives researcher Katrina Wade-Golden talked about the University of Michigan’s efforts to cope with the successful Ward Connery-backed campaign to ban affirmative action. Matlock and Wade-Golden highlighted results of a diversity survey of UM students who were undergraduates from 1990-1994.