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Civil Rights Group Warns of Misleading Petitioners

By Sylvia Maria Gross

KANSAS CITY, MO – Some area civil rights groups are saying the tactics employed by petitioners for the Missouri Civil Rights Initiative are misleading. The petition calls for a constitutional amendment to eliminate race and gender-based affirmative action in state-funded scholarships, hiring and contracting. Urban League president Gwen Grant says that could have unintended consequences.

"The consequences I think would weigh very heavily primarily on white women in Missouri who have been the beneficiaries of Affirmative Action," Grant says.

She also says people who signed the petition in error can get their names officially removed by affidavit.

Supporters of the amendment say their goal is to end state-sponsored discrimination and they're getting a lot of support from Missouri residents.

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