Opinion – Michael França: Quotas can help to rescue merit, while excluding the mediocre

The history of humanity is marked by the dominance of some groups over others, and this fact has assumed different configurations over time. In the not-too-distant past, aristocracy represented a type of sociopolitical organization in which family origin dictated people’s way of life. A small portion of the population automatically inherited a set of privileges simply by virtue of being born into a particular family.

After a few revolutions, in various corners of the world, nobles were removed from their captive chairs. The ideal was gradually installed that social ascension should take place through effort and talent. This conception made it possible to expand the opportunities for progress to a larger group of the population, and several socioeconomic advances were obtained. But at the same time, thousands were left behind.

The successful ones of a generation began to pass on significant advantages to their descendants. Once again, family origin began to play a broad role in determining the results achieved by individuals. But, unlike in the past, when it was common for unprepared people to assume relevant positions due only to hereditary privilege, currently families with better financial conditions invest heavily in the education of their children.

This does not mean that everyone will become brilliant or, at least, competent people. Talent does not arise spontaneously, but is usually a reflection of a well-orchestrated combination of individual efforts and the right investments made by family and society.

In this context, it is known that the lack of commitment has no social class. However, even in the case of elite children who don’t make the effort, the high investments made by their parents will help in the development of a curriculum with credentials for the job market. Furthermore, in certain situations, the network of contacts and the heritage inherited or built by their parents tend to allow those average children to maintain family status.

This scenario contributes to the deep crisis of legitimacy in relation to merit. The most prestigious social positions are marked by the high dominance of those born into wealthy families. Much of the dispute for these spaces ends up being limited to the children of the elite, while the rest of the population has to participate in a very unequal competition with those who have inherited considerable advantages.

In this context, affirmative actions, with quotas being one of them, can be thought of as a way of seeking to place individuals with similar life trajectories in competition and, thus, contributing to the “winners” having greater legitimacy in their achievements. Depending on how this type of intervention is designed, it also represents a means of selecting the best among those who have had similar investments and thus lessening the huge loss of talent in disadvantaged social classes.

Affirmative actions tend to increase the chances of minorities achieving a certain goal. This can be reflected in a change in the social aspirations of those who have been historically excluded and, consequently, make a greater set of the disadvantaged to work even more.

In the case of the favored, the pressure for greater effort increases, since now the mediocre can be left out. Quotas in universities are an example of this. If an elite child hasn’t made it through college entrance exams competing with those who had a similar investment set, maybe he hasn’t tried hard enough or simply isn’t talented.

The text is a tribute to the song “Refavela”, composed and performed by Gilberto Gil.