Like most media coverage of the DA’s "diversity clause", your editorial fails to grasp the core issues (Neat solution not enough, April 10). You claim there was a "messy compromise" between "two poles" in the party, leading to the adoption of the clause. This may be a slightly more sophisticated gloss on events than The Star’s alarmist pre-congress headline — "DA race war rages" — but it is no less wrong. There was no war and there was no armistice. All delegates agreed on the desirability of a diversity clause. What we now have entrenched in the DA’s constitution is a concept of (and commitment to) diversity that is faithful to our party’s liberal political philosophy and heritage. That is a victory for all. The clause acknowledges individuals as the bedrock of diversity and protects them against domination by the group. Such a safeguard is not some relic of "classical liberalism" more suited to a time of tyrannical "rule by kings and queens", as your editorial avers. It is as esse...
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