I.
Affirmative action is not discrimination, but rather an ethical vehicle for removing its systemic effects.
II.
Affirmative action can be defined as (bias-free) actions or policies favoring those who tend to suffer from discrimination or who have been historically excluded, especially in areas of employment or education, aiming to reduce the racist or sexist impact of previous unjust or prejudicial treatment (Fullinwider). Creating a "level playing field" for underrepresented groups, typically women and minorities, that have been the victims of some kind of discrimination in the past, is the goal of (the preferential treatment involved in affirmative action. A differentiation between preferential and procedural affirmative action should be noted. Preferential affirmative action is the unethical and in some cases immoral favorable treatment based on ethnicity or gender. Procedural affirmative action is special measures taken to reduce racial and sexual discrimination, and is usually considered ethical. (Pojman) This paper seeks to discuss the latter point. Discrimination is usually associated with social injustice, in particular, improper criteria, usually race or gender distinctions, used as a basis for preferential treatment. Such discrimination is most evident in the workplace and institutions of higher learning. For an action to be considered discriminatory in this manner it is likely derived from a morally unjustified attitude, is not based on individual merit,
Discrimination against race, gender, religion, or other social characteristics is occurring in all parts of the United States almost every day. Unfortunately, the U.S. has a history of extreme case of discrimination, which has evoked controversy and in worse cases, violence. To discourage any more of adverse discernment towards certain individuals, the Federal government has imposed legislation called affirmative action. According to At Issue: Affirmative Action, “Affirmative action is designed to promote access to opportunities in education, employment, housing, and government contracts among certain designated groups, such as women and minorities“ (At Issue). This law is necessary in today’s society in order to maintain equality and
This case shows how men and women of all races can be affected by the two headed monster called affirmative action. Affirmative action was established so that members of society such women, minorities or those with handicaps would be guaranteed an honest opportunity to achieve goals, professions or pursue higher education without discrimination. However, when a person’s sex, nationality, social settings and race compete against one another even those the act is intended to protect become
When addressing legal issues of diversity in the modern day era, one main topic is brought to discussion, affirmative action. It was put into place by the federal government in the 1960’s and was initially developed to close the gap in relation to the privileged majority and the unprivileged minority in America (Aguirre Jr. & Martinez, 2003). While it has been controversial since its origin, it remains controversial as critics argue it tries to equalize the impact of so many
Court cases that have involved Affirmative Action are not rare, such as Regents of University of California v. Bakke, Wessman v.Gittens (Russo and Mawdsley 263,266), and Grutter v. Bollinger (Kim 17). In these cases students of the non-minority category, were denied admissions into the school, even though they were more qualified. These court cases show how affirmative action has hurt majorities and benefited minorities. “Affirmative Action is calling into question the values of our society, such as equality, fairness, and justice” (Kim 12). Affirmative action is a form of reverse racism and it is in direct violation of the equal protection clause of Civil Rights Act of 1964. Giving out points based on race is unequal and if the majority gave points to Caucasians or Asian Americans, would receive serious back lash. People that gave these points to the whites or Asians will be viewed as a racist. Everyone should be held to the same standards and the same
Imagine a world where no one notices the color of each other’s skin, a world where everyone was treated equally, fairly, and without prejudice. This is the ultimate goal for our generation. We want to see equal opportunities for everyone regardless of sex, race, or nationality. The term affirmative action has been the center of national debate in the recent history with liberals, both black and white, arguing that affirmative action levels the playing field and makes up for historical prejudice and discrimination. Affirmative action means minorities that are any underrepresented group defined by race, ethnicity, or gender are preferably admitted to universities or employed in government and businesses.
Affirmative action is an active effort to improve the employment or educational opportunities among the minority groups, and woman in addition to promote the rights of the others who have the disadvantage. In 1964, Affirmative action arose as the way to fix racial discrimination and promote the rights that were established in the Civil Right Acts by President Lyndon Johnson on July 2, 1964, to prohibit public discrimination, however the movement was lead by the International figure Martin Luther King Jr. Ultimately, I strongly disagree with Robert Staples for believing that the policy of affirmative action should continue. Affirmative Action isn’t necessary to achieve racial equality in the United States. Everyone is born with the same advantages
In the fifty-four years since its inception, affirmative action (a term first used by President John F. Kennedy) has been both praised for its progressive implications and critiqued for its lack of effectiveness. Affirmative action is the policy of favoring applicants from a minority group considered to be underprivileged or at a disadvantage. Traditional affirmative action refers to policies that favor applicants based on race and gender in direct defiance of the Equal Protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Though it was imagined as being a temporary cure meant to level the playing field by bringing up those who were disadvantaged, it instead ended up holding down many who were more suitable in the hopes that others would catch
While Affirmative Action policies in existence have aimed to combat discrimination, they have not contributed fully to establishing fairness and equality in their implementation. These legislations execute reverse discrimination in an attempt to undo the evils of oppression in the past, while using racial preferences as a means to award recipients over academic achievement.
Affirmative Action is meant to eliminate any barriers that prevents groups that are discriminated against from having equal opportunities within education or employment. Affirmative Action was used to enroll and hire African Americans and other minorities to ensure that they are increasingly becoming affiliated with institutions and different organizations/business. By doing so it allowed for there to be diversity and gives the impression of equal opportunities, but not necessarily equality. Affirmative Action in a sense lead to a domino effect which made it look more convincing that equality was in arms reach. First institutions started factoring in race to help increase the number of African Americans that were enrolled, then funding and
Affirmative action - an action or policy favoring those who tend to suffer from discrimination, especially in relation to employment or education; positive discrimination. Is it helpful? Does it help minorities who need an additional push to become successful, or is just another form of discrimination? Although each party has great arguments, the setbacks that minorities face because of their economic status due to where they were born in life, which could affect the quality of their education, affirmative action is fair, as it only benefits for all people to have a chance of being successful.
Many critics of affirmative action believe it has failed to achieve its stated goal of equal employment opportunity. A few even believe that it has done more harm than good. A review of the statistics, however, shows
Affirmative are programs that help minority groups and African American male and female in order to make up from any discrimination from majority. Affirmative Action or usually call as AA has a goal to help them to gain access to jobs, university, or other special opportunity in a country. This policy is want to effort the inequality in our society. By setting the different standard between majority and minority, it is hoped that greater percentage of minority group will have status and same opportunity in society. On this point, we can say that is morally defensible.
Affirmative action is a discriminatory idea that individuals deserve acceptance or priority based on race rather than merit. Very often when colleges are deciding on which students get accepted, better qualified applicants are passed over in favor of students who are African American or Hispanic. The Department of Justice recently decided that they would look into the racism concerning affirmative action policies in college admissions. People may be unaware that the groups of people affirmative action hurts most are actually minorities as well, such as Jews and Asian-Americans.
For most of this country’s history, the nations top universities and businesses practiced the most effective form of affirmative action ever; the quota was for 100 percent white male. However, ever with affirmative actions programs in place, still minority-group members face far more discrimination than their white male counterparts. They still receive less pay and job opportunities than white males. Therefore, the legal controversy of affirmative actions programs continues.
Affirmative action came into play in the mid 1960’s President Lyndon Johnson issued an executive order that announced a toughened federal initiative requiring that employers with a history of discrimination in employment supply goals and timetables for the achievement of equal employment opportunity. (Arnold 211) Affirmative action is defined as a set of laws, policies, or guidelines that set in motion specific steps that need to be taken hire and promote persons from groups that were discriminated against. Affirmative action follows the Utilitarian theory, since it is looking out for the greater good by ensuring individuals of different backgrounds get a fair opportunity to excel in today’s society. The good in this scenario is that minorities