Constitutional Amendments on the Wisconsin Ballot

There are 3 Constitutional Amendments on the November 3 ballot. Pay attention, especially to the first one, also known as the Anti-Equity Amendment. What could happen if it passes? More details here from the League of Women Voters

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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE ANTI-EQUITY REFERENDUM/AMENDMENT:

BALLOT LANGUAGE*

“Governmental Entity Discrimination Prohibited: Shall section 27 article 1 of the constitution be created to prohibit governmental entities in the state from discriminating against, or granting preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public employment, public education, public contracting, or public administration?”

WHAT THIS AMENDMENT MEANS?

The title and first part of the ballot question lead voters to believe that is a new law to stop government from discriminating against people. That’s misleading. Wisconsin and federal law already make discrimination illegal.

So, what does this amendment intend to accomplish? It prohibits the state from granting “preferential treatment” to marginalized people. If this amendment passes, it will eliminate the equity-based gains Wisconsin has made over the last 60 years.

While framed as promoting equality, this amendment would reduce Wisconsin’s capacity to address long-standing disparities. It would strip public systems of tools essential for promoting equal opportunity and equitable access to the vulnerable in our society.

WHAT CAN HAPPEN IF THIS AMENDMENT PASSES?

Government programs that help people have an equal chance to succeed would be unconstitutional, ending decades of work to fix inequality.

  • What will be gained: Nothing
  • What will be lost: 60 years of progress for women and people of color

WHAT PROGRAMS AND POLICIES COULD BE ELIMINATED?

  • Health and Environmental Equity: Higher rates of chronic illness, disease and mortality and maternal mortality for Black women
  • Education: Changes to K-12 accommodations, curriculum; changes to UW admissions, scholarships, grants, courses, textbooks
  • Community-Action Programs: Head Start and social-support networks for operating food banks, homeless shelters, and domestic violence shelters
  • Government, Businesses, and Contracts: Workplace initiatives for women, public contracts for certified minority-owned firms, policies that enable equitable hiring, promotion and retention; and the Wisconsin
  • Supplier Diversity Program 

*The language of this constitutional amendment as it will appear in the Constitution is more expansive than the Question on our ballots. See https://my.lwv.org/wisconsin/constitutional-corner for details.