Mich. Affirmative Action Still in Limbo.

Mich. Affirmative Action Still in Limbo
Mich. Ballot Item on Affirmative Action Still in Limbo After Noisy Meeting
By TIM MARTIN Associated Press Writer
The Associated Press

LANSING, Mich. Dec 14, 2005 — In a raucous meeting drowned out by protesters, the state election board deadlocked Wednesday over whether to put a proposed ban on some affirmative action programs on the November ballot despite a court order to do so.

Dozens of opponents shouted as the four-member Board of State Canvassers voted. Two Republicans voted to put the initiative on the ballot, one Democrat voted against and another Democrat did not vote; the measure needed three votes to pass.

Earlier, the meeting was temporarily adjourned and police were called in. As the board was preparing to vote, a group of high school students had moved toward the front of the room, chanting, "They say Jim Crow, we say hell no!" and knocking over a table.
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The ballot proposal would ban race and gender preferences in government hiring and university admissions. Its supporters had gone to court to force the board to put the measure on the November 2006 ballot after the panel deadlocked over the summer.
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http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1406329