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Arguments Against Affirmative Action

706 Words3 Pages

Affirmative action is a very controversial topic. It is what allows people of African descent, women or minorities who are skilled and qualified to compete and surpass in areas where they have been underrepresented, in other words, to make up for historical discrimination. It is required by the federal government that schools, universities or employers take affirmative action into consideration if they are seeking to implement programs or make an effort to attain student body or employee diversity that encompasses a broad array of qualifications and characteristics regardless of racial or ethnic origin in order to prevent discrimination. “Affirmative action was first established in Executive Order 10925, by President John F. Kennedy on March …show more content…

The main reason for this was to ensure that all qualified individuals were included regardless of their race and gender. Although it is not required by any employer to hire a person who does not meet the qualifications necessary to get the job or to choose one less qualified than the other based on race or in gender. Five years after President John F. Kennedy’s executive order was given, Lyndon B. Johnson reinstated affirmative action and stressed the importance of it. He firmly believed that “Men and women of all races are born with the same range of abilities. But ability is not just the product of birth. Ability is stretched or stunted by the family that you live with, and the neighborhood you live in--by the school you go to and the poverty or the richness of your surroundings. It is the product of a hundred unseen forces playing upon the little infant, the child, and finally the man” (President …show more content…

Most importantly, many people of African descent, women and minorities have already been aided in achieving the education they needed and were offered with the opportunities to attain careers of their choice rather than whatever was available. Many have also been admitted into elite universities or have been employed in positions of power due to affirmative action. I believe that this should apply to all races and genders to receive equal opportunities in education, unrestricted of synthetic barriers or preferences and not only through programs designed to “force” them in but by the sincere and fairness that everyone deserves to receive equal opportunity. The future generations to come will be able to have a much more educated foundation to work on, since the number one reason for minorities is the lack of education and qualifications based on the previous and many limitations they once

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Affirmative Action: The Case Of Gratz V. Bollinger

379 Words | 2 Pages

Affirmative action is the policy of giving special consideration to minorities and women. People should be chosen based on their abilities and not race, or gender. In the case of Gratz v. Bollinger (2003), the Supreme Court ruled that it is unconstitutional if affirmative action automatically increases an applicant 's chances over others just because of their race or gender. The University of Michigan used a 150-point scale to rank applicants, with 100 points needed to guarantee admission. The University gave minorities an automatic 20-point bonus towards their score.

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Is Race Based Affirmative Action Policy Morally Wrong Essay

758 Words | 4 Pages

While racial diversity is important to improve education by letting student explore other cultures and backgrounds, I claim that when it comes to treating people equally, you have to adopt a restricted list of requirements that would apply to everyone. Assuming that a person is more qualified than another one because he is black or Latino is morally wrong. This might create two problems. First, by adopting the affirmative action policy, you are treating the white people as the minority race which may suggest that white people are of an inferior race or the work and academic records of the white student is of a lesser value. Second, applicants who are benefiting from the race-based affirmative action would spend less time studying and get lower grades knowing that they will get points that will compensate for their missing work.

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Affirmative Action Vs Libertarianism

987 Words | 4 Pages

Thus, often without realizing it, the United States has practiced what, in effect, was white affirmative action on a highly generous and widespread basis, followed by a much more modest program of black affirmative action. By understanding this history, we can come to terms with the widening gap between blacks and whites noted by Lyndon Johnson and with the incapacity of many blacks to be able to make good this gap in the following four decades (Katznelson,

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How Does Affirmative Action Affect Minorities

508 Words | 3 Pages

Affirmative action policies promote diversity in public spaces, which will prepare students for future after graduation. This is essential because the world has become rapidly diverse, especially in the United States. Furthermore, affirmative action provides an environment for minority students in which they can have more chances to overcome their handicaps and to compete equally. From many aspects, minorities still have many obstacles to excel in this society, especially due to their socioeconomic status. Proponents of affirmative action programs assert that non-minority students blame their failure on this policy.

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Affirmative Action In Higher Education Analysis

362 Words | 2 Pages

In his article “Affirmative Action in Higher Education: Is It Necessary?” , Rodney Reed debates the necessity of affirmative action as a critical measure in the fight against discrimination in higher education. In order to stress this conviction, he does not eschew the usage of strongly biased diction and argument. Firstly, on page 333 Reed states that “in [his] view, affirmative action is a series of positive steps” and that “[his] concern is with Blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans”, where he does not conceal that this is his perspective and not necessarily the truth.

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Essay On Brown Vs Board Of Education

1106 Words | 5 Pages

We are in need of a Brown v. Board of Education for higher education, meaning a federal policy of desegregation that would ensure students that not just some options in the public system exist regardless of race, but that access to the entire system is available regardless of race. They need to see that the system as a whole is not divided into levels based on social status, education, or income (Steinbaum, 2017). This would help to reduce inequality within American higher education. In this era of credentialization (when employers raise the educational requirements for a given job) we cannot stop until all students have full access to an equal education (Steinbaum,

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Affirmative Action-ACLU Position Paper

499 Words | 2 Pages

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.

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Affirmative Action Hurts White People

845 Words | 4 Pages

“Affirmative Action may not be a perfect system, but there should be no doubt that it has endangered many successes. It has opened the doors of America’s most elite educational institutions to minority students, granting them unprecedented opportunities” (Ogletree 12). Thanks to Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson a policy that prohibits employment and education discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, and sex is offered today to those who suffer from said discriminations (A Brief History). Affirmative action has opened abundant openings for minorities, allowing the cycle of going to college to be passed down generations and provided job opportunities that otherwise would not be considered by most. Affirmative

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Affirmative Action: Reverse Discrimination

1480 Words | 6 Pages

Since the very group of words “affirmative action” is in total contradiction with the amendment fourteen which guarantees people equal protection under the law. But coming to affirmative action, we have to remark the sad history behind it, which is once again to disadvantage a group for another one. Therefore we can clearly say that affirmative action is not only illegal but it is also unconstitutional since it violates clearly the fourteenth amendment. Not only that, we need also to notice that affirmative action goes against this American ideal which is equal opportunity, the ability for someone to use whatever wealth and/or talent he/she has to reach his/her fullest potential. Due to affirmative action, we will notice down in the paper how affirmative action prevents people to use their fullest

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Events That Contributed To Ww2

858 Words | 4 Pages

Without the occurrence, advancements, changes and inventions in history our world would be different today. Our history changed lives and the world itself. The World War II had been the most widespread and deadliest war of all time. From the major ways in which World War II was fought in the different fronts and theaters of the war to the post-war settlement that established international institutions such as the United Nations that profoundly shaped Europe and the world itself. Not to mention, that there was an immediate post-war period that contributed to the emergence of the Cold War.

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Affirmative Action Should Not Be Taught In Schools

459 Words | 2 Pages

However, that’s based off the assumption that minorities do not prosper to the same degree as white people, which is not always true. Many white people live in poverty, and many people from other ethnicities thrive. J. C. Watts puts it like this: “I'm not one that believes that affirmative action should be based on one's skin color or one's gender, I think it should be done based on one's need, because I think if you are from a poor white community, I think that poor white kid needs a scholarship just as badly as a poor black kid.”

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Affirmative Action In College Admissions Essay

437 Words | 2 Pages

Affirmative action in college admissions is one of the most controversial topics in America today. Affirmative action was an idea created by President John F. Kennedy, but made an executive order by President Lyndon Johnson. It prohibited publicly funded companies from discriminating based on race, color, gender, national origin or religion. This includes public universities and colleges and marked a decisive change in the college admission process. This led to colleges using quotas to ensure a balance in diversity and credibility on college campuses.

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Arguments Against Affirmative Action

1011 Words | 5 Pages

The fear is that without this policy, diversity will not always happen if left up to chance. It is true that schools and other organizations have discriminated against women and people of other race. This problem created an unfair advantage for males of the superior race. Supporters also charge that without affirmative action African Americans would have a more difficult process of being admitted into prestigious and predominately white universities (Hopkins, 2010). Affirmative Action allows minorities to reflect different areas of study and work that otherwise would have never been considered.

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The Pros And Cons Of Affirmative Action

1126 Words | 5 Pages

In an article from the Chronicle of Higher Education they say how, “what we know as affirmative action… will not solve the problem because it doesn't include discussion of the truly disadvantaged Americans, who are disproportionately black and brown schoolchildren isolated in communities with high poverty rates and poor schools“ (Par. 22). Students who strive for success from these conditions are not favored over minority students that have better economic grounding. Admission offices hardly pay attention to who they are accepting, and they should put an emphasis on the background students come from. A minority student from a lower class neighborhood should not have the same rate of acceptance as a middle class or even high class student with the same qualifications. In a book by Carl Cohen and James Sterba, they attempt to clarify the original intend of Affirmative Action by saying how it is, “a policy of favoring qualified women and minority candidates over qualified men or nonminority candidates, with the immediate goals of outreach, remedying discrimination, or achieving diversity” (200).

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Argumentative Essay On Racial Equality

1734 Words | 7 Pages

Throughout many of the affirmative action legal cases, one of the main arguments from proponents is that it is necessary in order to right the wrongs of past racial discrimination. Some say that affirmative action is justified because even though white applicants may be more qualified, this is only because they did not face the same hardships as their minority counterparts (Rachels, Ethics, 1973).  Many argue if we do not integrate disadvantaged minorities into mainstream social institutions, they will continue to suffer the discrimination that has plagued our country for centuries and that this is detrimental to not only the minorities but also society as a whole (Anderson, 2002, 1270–71). However, the debate has recently shifted to the benefits of diversity in the classroom which the Supreme Court has affirmed as being a positive thing

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