Just a thought.

Deliverance

When does a minority as classed in the legal sense (as written by law) stop becoming a minority due to the leg up given to them in society? Is there a point where a gov has done it's job so well that the so called minority have been lifted out of the status of being a minority?

As such, when and how would it be announced and legisilated that such minorities are able to stand by themselves as equals? Thereby taking away the previous laws giving the persons extra needs and accomadations seeing as they might not need it anymore?

Victor

Um , you do know what the word minority means, don't you?

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/minority

mi⋅nor⋅i⋅ty
  /mɪˈnɔrɪti, -ˈnɒr, -maɪ-/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [mi-nawr-i-tee, -nor, -mahy-] Show IPA noun, plural -ties, adjective
–noun
1. the smaller part or number; a number, part, or amount forming less than half of the whole.
2. a smaller party or group opposed to a majority, as in voting or other action.
3. a group differing, esp. in race, religion, or ethnic background, from the majority of a population: legislation aimed at providing equal rights for minorities.
4. a member of such a group.
5. the state or period of being under the legal age of full responsibility.

Legal supports, like the Equal Status Act or the various employment protection acts from the mid-1970s are there to protect people who are or have been in groups that have suffered discrimination or exclusion by virtue of being in that group, e.g. women who married or were pregnant used to be regularly forced to leave the work place. It was decided that this was no longer acceptable and the law banned such behaviour in the vast majority of cases*. However, there are more women than men in the country, so its not really a minority protection, it is the protection of a weaker group (pregnant women) from the actions of a stronger group (discriminatory employers).

However, unlike some countries, Ireland prohibits certain discrimination (a prohibitory support), while allowing for making up for past discrimination, e.g. fast-tracking qualified individuals through management levels so as to correct distortions (I would see this as a corrective support, not a positive support). Other countries actually engage in much stronger measures, e.g. providing college grants for those in groups that have been historically discriminated against. Given that there are few countries that have gone from severe discrimination to equitable panaceas, I don't see these positive supports being removed very soon.


* There are still some restrictions relating to the likes of lead mines, where the ban is probably proportionate to the risks involved. However, there is also the (modest) Health and Safety Benefit available to women who shouldn't work in certain employments when actually pregnant, e.g. airline pilot, certain pharmaceutical industries, employment involving heavy lifting.