During the civil rights movement, minorities were being oppressed and discriminated against. Minorities were losing out on opportunities and jobs. They felt like everything was just so unfair to them. This mistreatment happened until the government implemented affirmative action. Affirmative action allowed minorities more opportunities into schools and allowed more opportunities for jobs. It also allowed society to become more diverse with ethnicities and cultures. Affirmative action diluted the racism in the country and eventually helped everyone work collaboratively. Now that affirmative action has done its job, I feel that it is no longer needed. Affirmative action was made to level the playing field between all cultures and …show more content…
Those who support affirmative action say that this system erases racism, but instead it actually enables reverse racism. Reverse discrimination, which is discrimination against non-minority persons, has been a huge problem since the rise of affirmative action. There are many cases of white people being discriminated against because of their skin color. During the 1970s there is one court case that sticks out. It was about a boy of white skin color. He tried to apply to medical school and was denied twice. He went to the supreme court twice about how he was denied because of his skin color. (Regents)There is also another court case where a group of firefighters went to court because they were refused a raise because of they were white and not a minority.( "PSLweb) This system, now, raises more problems than solutions. Because of affirmative action there is a new racist target and that is white people. White people are being discriminated against because of the inequality they may have caused in the past. I believe that isn’t fair. With affirmative action they are just fighting racism with even more racism. Fighting fire with fire doesn’t solve anything. White people don’t have to be punished because of something their ancestors did a long time ago. We should learn to just let go of the past and learn from it. It is not just jobs that people are getting cheated out of, it is also the students. Students are not being accepted into universities even though they
Generations of families have suffered due unequal laws or prejudices set in place to prevent minorities from growing. Slavery, segregation, separate but equal laws, the trail of tears, failing ESOL classes, unequal pay and so much more effect today's youth and causing history to change slowly if at all. Affirmative action has good intentions and is very much needed in today's world however it sometimes fails doing what it was created to do.
As a minority Roberto Santiago’s essay Black and Latino reveals that even though he has been generally underrepresented by his ethnicity, he has led a successful life without affirmative action. Since Santiago was both African American and Hispanic he dealt with identity issues and stereotypes throughout his adolescent life. Even though affirmative action is supposed to make attempts to improve opportunities for groups that were historically excluded it is still a form of discrimination itself. The preference of one race over another is discrimination despite the fact if the group is gaining benefits. Contemporary society still takes on the controversial debate over affirmative action in educational institutions and employment. Institutions are still pressured to accept more minorities even if they do not meet the full requirements such as in education or in employment. Racial preferences stigmatize minority groups instead of finding better ways to make opportunities equal to minorities. Affirmative action also implies that all minority groups need more assistance in order to succeed, but according to Santiago he triumphed without needing compensation. In educational institutions such as universities they are influenced by affirmative action; since they admit students based on race instead of looking for their qualifications. Even though affirmative action is supposed to create diversity in schools it does not help if minority students are not prepared for a higher
The US is a melting pot with various groups of immigration such as: Asian American, Jewish American, African American, and Mexican Ame. Minority groups have experienced many kinds of segregation. They are discriminated in education and employment. Then, a program called “Affirmative Action” was introduced with the hope to engage more people of color into the society.
My main reason on why we should keep Affirmative Actions is because of its success. For instance many blacks in America would not have accomplished many of the things they did without its help. There would be no chance for minorities to advance in the working field. We wouldn’t have black lawyers, doctors or business owners today. Although affirmative action may
Affirmative action was a system created during the civil rights movement to protect African Americans from racial discrimination. There are people in favor of affirmative action and feel like it’s necessary to have it in place to protect blacks against discrimination. Others believe that affirmative action harms blacks more than is benefits them. In fact they might say that affirmative action does not benefit them at all anymore. Both sides use the issue of diversity and blacks having negative consequences after affirmative action. But times have changed and even though African Americans might still struggle with discrimination, it is not the same it was during the sixties. And for that reason I believe affirmative action does work the same way and should be replaced with a different system. A system that brings diversity but not in an unfair way and one that will help different racial groups achieve success rather than hold them down.
If affirmative action were to take place, people would have an equal opportunity to get hired for a job. As stated earlier, many people today get turned down from jobs because of their race. No one should be disqualified from a job because of the pigment of their skin. Affirmative action was designed to give qualified minorities (African Americans and women) a chance to compete on equal ground with the upper class (Caucasians). However, affirmative action seems to be a distant memory rather than a current action. A University of Chicago graduate applying for a business money management position in Dallas told the Times of how one hiring manager became excited while talking to him over the phone about how lucky the company was to hear from someone with a top business school education. But once the company representatives met him and saw that he was African American, “Their eyes kind of hit the ceiling a bit. It was kind of quiet for 45 seconds.” The company’s interest in him quickly cooled (Miah). The law prohibits racial discrimination yet when the African American graduate presented himself before the company that was “lucky to hear from someone with a top business school education” they quickly dismissed him. Why? Is it because he was an African American or did he “not meet company standards”. Minority workers have an unemployment rate twice that of Caucasians and hold dead end, low paying labor jobs. The reason most minorities cannot
The affirmative action movement began in 1960 with the intention of promoting opportunities for minority groups. How is that in the year 2015 we are still having discussions about women and minorities being discriminated against? While the movement of the 1960’s has brought attention to discrepancy against groups, which has paved the platform for reform and opportunity, there is a break down in the movement if 55 years later there is still discrepancy thereby suggesting a resign of the efforts of the movement may be needed. Do I agree with affirmative action? I am a female. I’m a college graduate with an earned bachelor’s degree. I am enrolled in schooling to
Affirmative action is a long going battle with social and political conflicts focused mostly in education. The Universities of Texas, Michigan and Washington were challenged in recent years due to their controversial court cases all from affirmative action. With the court taking the side of acknowledging diversity in education as a priority, the decision made by the court will continue on with many controversial debates on diversity and whether the policy should be eliminated indefinitely. Even though this will not put an end to the policy soon, the long road to equality will be a bumpy ride with prolong positive and negative effects. I hope affirmative action would be changed or eliminated in the near future because it causes problems within
Throughout history America had a struggle against slavery and racism. After fighting for independence and freedom, America in current times is now free and mostly free of racism. Although “Affirmative Action” has caused some trouble due to the fact that people are claiming this process is racist and should not be used as a factor of getting into college. Affirmative Action is discrimination against assisting racial minorities in school admissions, hiring contracting in financial aid. (Sacks & Thiel) During times of less diversity and more stereotypes, institutes and other educational programs used Affirmative Action as a way to eliminate requests and choose the best person that qualifies. (Sacks & Thiel) Affirmative Action is no longer necessary because Affirmative Action uses race and not the advantages or disadvantages that people have, which may be unconstitutional and as well as illegal. (Ncsl) Without Affirmative Action students may use their “merit” scores as a factor of their acceptance (Sacks & Thiel) Lastly Affirmative Action is no longer needed because it increases racial tension. (Top 10)
The Affirmative Action Program is not reaching its goal. The program was supposed to be an equalizer. Minorities were supposed to have the same opportunities in the workforce, and education as others. Now the gap is bigger than thirty years ago. Less African American’s go to college now than in 1990. Affirmative Action also casts shadows on our merit. Why should an unworthy candidate receive a position only because of their color? This way of thinking only excuses minorities from being judged by
I do not think that these affirmative actions should exist, as the past discrimination against these minority groups does not mean that they are being discriminated now. People with different races and gender are treated equally nowadays, as slavery was abolished in 1865 and the rise of feminism. There are several pros and cons of these affirmative action policies.
In my opinion, affirmative action has not balanced privilege in the labor force or educational systems. I do not believe leveling the playing field is a solution to this problem. Likewise, I think it does cause reverse discrimination. I do not think we will ever rid ourselves of judging others, this will always be an issue, and we are judgmental people. Affirmative action does not give the position to the most qualified person and the best fit for the position. To me this is ridiculous. If I am hiring, I do not care what race or color a person is, I want the most qualified and the person that will work best with the rest of the staff. There is a lot of grey area when deciding what person would be a good fit. I believe, affirmative action is a rule that was created
Racism is a problem that is older than the country we live in. Since the beginning of time racism, prejudice, and discrimination has existed. Through the years, society has come a long way in dealing with this everlasting problem; however, the problem still lives in today's world. It affects who we are and where we will go in our life. So if racism can so dramatically alter our life, one might question what can be done to cease this unfair practice? One solution, or rather method to equal out the past inequalities African American and other minorities, is Affirmative Action. The basic goal of these policies is to increase opportunities for minorities in the United States job market and educational system. Yet one might also question if
First and foremost, I agree with the idea of affirmative action. I believe that it brings benefits and that any flaws it may have are minuscule compared to the advantages it brings to society, students’ lives, and schools in general. It is also blatantly obvious that affirmative action does NOT violate the 14th Amendment nor does it violate the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Martin Luther King Jr once said, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character” (King 5). In this quote, Martin Luther King says that he hoped America in the future would have fixed the issues on equality, so that instead of judging and giving special accommodations based on someone’s race and skin color, they instead give special accommodations to those with special talents and character instead. The affirmative action