Within days there were hundreds of postings on NASCAR.com, questioning the gift and NASCAR's motive for making it. NASCAR officials closed ranks and said it was part of their concern for minorities, but others contended it was hush money to keep Jackson from turning NASCAR's lagging diversity efforts into an issue. When PUSH came to shove, they said, NASCAR caved in and purchased peace.
"People confused our motives," Taylor says. "We support diversity, not political views."
Still, it was hard for fans to reconcile Jackson's antiwar rhetoric while drivers such as Rusty Wallace and Michael Waltrip were praising the American initiative in Iraq and asking fans to support troops overseas.
Dodge's ProgramDodge, meanwhile, has been quietly successful with its diversity program. In 1999, when it was involved only in the Truck series, Dodge worked with Petty Enterprises to field Mexican driver Carlos Contreras, with sponsorship by Hot Wheels. Contreras left the series at the end of 2002 and is working with an Hispanic racing team, trying to put together a Busch effort with sponsorship from Hispanic businesses.
Dodge is particular about who it choose to carry its banner, and it goes far beyond a driver's ability behind the wheel. "We look for people who can be a role model," says Bob Wildberger, head of Dodge's motorsports program. "We want someone who can represent both us and their community and be a spokesman for both of them."
Bill Lester fits that profile, and then some. He has a degree in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of California at Berkeley and worked as a project manager for Hewlett-Packard before putting his career aside to concentrate on racing. He began in sports cars, racing amateur events in Northern California. He has four starts in the 24-Hours of Daytona endurance race and has spent time in both the IMSA and Trans-Am series. He got his chance in NASCAR when he was tapped to drive a Busch car on the Watkins Glen road course in 1999. He started 24th and moved up to 10th before an on-track skirmish dropped him back to 21st at the checker flag. He made five starts in Trucks the next year. Dodge liked what it saw and signed Lester for its Diversity Program with Bobby Hamilton Racing.
While Lester is the standard bearer for Dodge's diversity program, he is not the only success story in the effort-there are guys like Zambrano, the Evernham crewman. Born in San Miguel, El Salvador, Zambrano moved to the United States about five years ago. He liked cars and found a high school teacher who shared his passion for horsepower. "I was prob-ably headed to a tech school and a dealership," he says. "Then I saw the information about the Dodge scholarship program on the Internet and applied."
Zambrano went to school in Texas and graduated last summer. His first job with Evernham was with the crew that repairs cars that come into the shop after Sunday's racing. It's a job that often goes to the greenest member on a team. "I began just doing cleanup and learning everything I could," Zambrano says. "But I kept asking to be part of the road crew."
Early this season Zambrano was tapped to take over tires for Elliott's car. It's a job that calls for quick reaction, concentration, accurate record keeping, and the ability to anticipate what may be needed at the next tire change. He still helps out in other areas when he has time and an extra hand is needed. "I'd like to become a car chief or a crew chief," he specifies.