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Affirmative Action-ACLU Position Paper

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Affirmative action is a tool that is used to ensure that minority groups are granted equal opportunity. Whether it be college admissions, or in the workplace, affirmative action makes it possible for all people to enjoy the same opportunities despite skin color, gender, or nationality. Affirmative action was started by President John F. Kennedy. President Kennedy started affirmative action to make sure that during the hiring process, and also during employment, that all employees were treated the same, despite their race or nationality. Thereafter, President Lyndon B. Johnson followed up by making it a requirement for government to hire without counting race, religion, nationality, or gender against applicants. This is how affirmative action started. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) position paper, called “Affirmative Action- ACLU Position Paper”, a 1998 release by the U.S. Department of statistics showed that “blacks are almost twice as likely as whites to be unemployed.” This is a shocking statistic and proves that discrimination in the workplace …show more content…

In 1995, the number of black college students was less than 5%. By 1990 over 11% of college students were black. This jump in percentage is thanks to the role of affirmative action. According to Casey Quinlan, in her article, “Why We Still Need Affirmative Action Policies in College Admissions”, there are two kinds of affirmative action approaches used in college and university admissions. The soft approach is when colleges and universities use outreach programs to attract a diverse population of students. A hard approach is when colleges or universities actually take race and gender into consideration during the application process. The statistics from the ACLU paper are proof that affirmative action, along with these approaches, have been successful and are making a difference in creating a diverse atmosphere for colleges and

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The main purpose of Affirmative Action is to put an end to discrimination towards the minorities. Although black citizens were put towards a disadvantage in society with the assistance of Affirmative Action was reversed back towards white citizens. When racials practice that have historically have placed blacks at a disadvantage are removed that is when whites believe that preferential treatment is given back to the blacks. Hill also argues that there needs to be some changes in the labor

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Affirmative action was created to provide a path to employment for the “members of groups that have historically suffered discriminatory treatment.” (224). The American Government was the first to ensue actions in efforts to set the example of employment equality for all other private and public organizations. A. Philip Randolph provided the birth to affirmative action by threatening to have a protest rally in Washington D.C.. In fear of the possible repercussions, President Roosevelt put forth the first policy statement in response to discrimination.

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Tita Hicks Ms. Ezekiel Period 8 11 January 2017 WHAT IS AFFIRMATIVE ACTION? Affirmative Action is the policy or policies in support of a particular group of people who currently suffer or historically suffered from inequality. Often Affirmative Action policies focus on education and employment and many organizations and institutions actively engage in efforts to improve opportunities for those particular groups who are excluded or unequal in American society. Affirmative action affected minorities and women.

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l Affirmative action was intended to increase the access of education and job opportunities for members of groups that are, historically discriminated against, affirmative action programs try to ensure that minorities get extra special access to jobs and schools, which, for many people, there is not equal opportunity. Affirmative action, even the playing field because it allows those who have the same potential as whites to receive better jobs or a better education to prepare themselves to be qualified to enter the workforce. Affirmative action has helped in the progress of women of all colors in the United States as we can clearly see how they are CEO’s of major companies, therefore this program was not simply put in place for blacks

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Across the board, equality in America is a heavily debated topic. Whether it is on the subject of job opportunities or police brutality, equality is understood to a utopic idea and that is suppressed by an ingrained social ideology that some people are “superior” to others. The case of education is no different. There are many factors in education that contribute to an overall imbalance in the system and one of the more debated factors would be the implementation of affirmative action in the college application process and the effects of this policy on the students affected by it, both majority or minority students. Affirmative action has had a negative impact on student education, more so on minority students.

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Ironically, in the present day, the debate over affirmative action is still contested under the idea of fairness. The following essay will identify and analyze the history of American public opinion in regards to affirmative action and the issue of fairness. Obtaining accurate polling information on American views on affirmative action is very complex, in part because the policy means different things to different Americans. Further, the wording and the context in which poll questions are framed have a very clear effect on the responses received. In August, a poll by the Pew Research Center, asking whether affirmative action programs intended to increase the number of black and minority students on college campuses were viewed positively, showed that Americans consider affirmative action programs in general to be good, with 71% agreeing that the programs were a “good thing”.

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Breyer Hill Government 3/15/16 Affirmative Action is Unnecessary in 2016 “Affirmative action policies are those in which an institution or organization actively engages in efforts to improve opportunities for historically excluded groups in American society.” Affirmative Action is the result of a 1960’s civil rights movement in order to provide equal opportunities to minorities and women in employment and education. President Kennedy was the first person to use the term “affirmative action” in an executive order that was primarily used to provide African Americans improved opportunities in employment and education. President Lyndon B. Johnson was an advocate for affirmative action, He believed that it was important to have more racial diversity in the work force. He signed an executive order that promoted employers to employ minority employees and for colleges and universities to recruit African American and Latino students.

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As a topic of conversation that has consumed American politics for decades, affirmative action has served as America’s letter of apology to minorities that have faced such harsh discrimination through the years. Affirmative action serves as a historical turning point in the United States, and has closely addressed the issues that racial, class, and gender minorities have faced for centuries. However, there is immense controversy that comes with the idealistic concept of affirmative action. While many researchers find it to be beneficial, others view this concept as erroneous.

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There are a lot of African-Americans, Hispanics, and women that are successful in business, science, and agriculture. Now, affirmative action is neither morally justifiable nor socially beneficial. Affirmative action divides the workplace, institutions, and universities into groups because race and sex are taken into consideration. In any institutions or universities, there should not be any minorities. Gender and race should not matter.

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Affirmative action policies command attention because they tap into basic debates about fairness. As a nation, we say we are committed to fairness, but our history of achieving fairness for all individuals, regardless of race, ethnicity or gender, has been far from perfect. Any policy that reminds us of the difference between

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Affirmative action is instilled by the government in an attempt to make institutions more diverse, however, it can do more harm than good. If the government allowed the institutions to make their own decisions about how to handle diversity, they would still see the diversification of the community that they desire but the institution would not have to

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Affirmative action makes more college students aware and accepting of other ethnicities. Now some argue that affirmative action promotes discrimination. While this may be true in some cases, most research states that affirmative action decreases racism and discrimination by having multiple ethnic groups at colleges. By having multiple ethnic groups, it promotes equality and allows students to accept all cultures as equal

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The intention of affirmative action, although controversial, is to assist those in minority groups from being discriminated against in order to achieve certain positions. However, it can be argued to be in fact just reverse discrimination. Some places in which affirmative action exists is in the workforce, the government, as well as the educational system. A problem with the idea is that although a person might be more qualified, they might fail to get land the spot because they aren’t in the minority.

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Affirmative action in colleges is based on a good idea, but needs heavy reform. The system used right now in many colleges is far too reliant on race, where socioeconomic background is much more important. In its current state the system is just too race-exclusive and easily taken advantage of by an outlier. Some prestigious schools accept students who are essentially set up for failure. It seems that the term “affirmative action” is most often used synonymously with “race”.

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In our country, the term “affirmative action” was first heard in 1961 under President Kennedy as a way to rectify the racial discrimination occurring at the time. The purpose of the affirmative action policies was to insure blacks, and other minority groups had the same chances for promotion, jobs, school admissions, scholarships, etc. that were previously only available to whites. Affirmative action was meant to be a temporary remedy to “level the playing field.” This policy has been debated many times over the year but was upheld in the U.S. Supreme Court in Fisher v. Texas.

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