Irrelevance of Statistical Averages to Perceived Bias

Helen Thomas recently died and she is rightly remembered as a "pioneer." What Helen Thomas did was truly amazing as she not only put together a career as the first woman to do what she did, but she also raised the bar in her profession and blew past the bar of simply proving that women can do the same job as men. She proved they she could do it better than most.

It would be tempting to compare her to Jackie Robinson, another trailblazer who was memorialized in film this year. However, not all bias is created equal, so I want to push away from false equivalence. Too quickly latching onto a narrative of the pioneer seems to do a subtle and mischievous disservice.

We can look at statistical averages to measure discrimination in our world, today, which remains despite the efforts of people who have "broken through the X barrier." The world is a vastly unequal place, even today. However, one simple point must be emphasized. That as much as the statistical averages differ, they tell us nothing about the capabilities of each demographic category. Statistical averages are silent on the vast array of things that we all want to talk about.

President Obama for the first time as a sitting president explained what it felt like to be subjected to discrimination. But, his last word on the subject is that his daughters are just different. He says that the younger generation is just better than us. This is likely true. In the last 50 years, a whole career for people like Helen Thomas, the world has changed. No one takes it for granted that race, creed, or sex will prohibit you from doing things that you want to do. Despite this fact, however, the legacy is an inescapable feature of the debate.

There should be no journalist that doesn't know who Helen Thomas was. There should be no diminishing of the achievements of folks who overcame similar obstacles, but the fight for equality does not end with women both being equal and women continuing to feel the lingering victimization. When Obama talks about what he has seen, personally, as discrimination he must walk away from this experience and retire to a private place in the White House to consider the precedent that he is setting. In a world where young black men feel completely alienated, the White House can no longer be a joke as an aspiration.

This brings us back to stats 101. The statistical difference between races is dwarfed by magnitude of difference within one race. We are different on average, but this no longer correlates with a glass ceiling for achievement within any one category. While history cannot be forgotten, those that have succeeded and become path-breakers have rejected the notion that the statistical differences between categories must matter for their potential. Perhaps one might take heart in breaking down a barrier that still remains. Perhaps a person will remember to help others who follow behind themselves because of the recognition of the achievement. The true measure, however, of progress is simply getting beyond the narrative of statistical averages and work on making that data irrelevant by setting a new example.