As revealed by the above video, Rand is a proponent of a sunny-side up, left-libertarian version of American history.
Racial discrimination within public institutions should be stamped out; discrimination in the private sector, however, probably should not be, as this would entail a prying federal government and likely violations of multiple Constitutional amendments. But never fear! Racial discrimination isn't just immoral, it's bad business, and if the government just gets out of the way, all non-economic discrimination will come to an end on its own.
Through Rand certainly goes further than any other politician in criticizing Civil Rights, there's a lot wrong with his view.
The argument that private businesses are more profitable when they serve everyone is often correct, particularly in a mass consumer society -- though one shouldn't forget that value is ultimately subjective. An entrepreneur might be able to charge higher prices, and receive more personal satisfaction, by operating a restaurant that caters only to whites (or Jews or Chinese or Indians), and he should have the right to do so.
Of course, instances of businesses refusing service are exceedingly rare, and the Civil Rights Act most often comes into effect with regards to hiring. And here, the question is always about whether this institution or that business is "racist" because it doesn't have enough blacks on staff.
A free-market libertarian like Rand should have a response to all this ready at hand. If American institutions are "racist" in hiring (whether it be overt or unconscious), then there should be a great untapped pool of brilliant and unemployed black scientists, hedge-fund managers, and computer programmers -- all of whom could be hired by savvy entrepreneurs at discount rates and used to staff profitable businesses. Put simply, the free-market should correct for irrational bigotry. The fact that it doesn't -- and that the federal government has to constantly force institutions to hire blacks by threatening civil-rights lawsuit -- is yet more evidence of an intractable difference in intelligence between whites and blacks.
This is another reason why libertarians need HBD.
