Affirmative Action is Against the Bible
America was known as the Land of Opportunity. Then it became evident
that "opportunity" was only available to white men. Later, laws were
passed to ensure equal opportunity regardless of race, sex, or religion.
These Affirmative Action laws were set in place by our government with the
intent of correcting the social evil know as prejudice; but in doing so,
they created a monster. Affirmative action has become an ineffective,
outdated, and socially harmful policy that is weakening our great nation.
"The adoption of Affirmative Action programs in the 1960s reflected
our national aspiration to overcome long-entrenched injustices and become a
society where equal opportunity, or at least a fair opportunity, was a
reality for more of our citizens. These programs were a response to
economic, political and cultural circumstances that demanded, then
encouraged, and then tolerated widespread discrimination on the basis of
such factors as color, gender and ethnic background. The common hope was
that these programs would be transitory in nature and would enable us as a
society to reach a point, at some future date, when they would no longer be
needed" (Shapiro). It is my opinion that we have now reached that date.
Continued use of the policy is much like continued use of a strong
medication. When a patient is suffering from a terrible disease, as was
the United States suffering from discrimination, strong medication is
sometimes needed to cure the problem. But once the disease is taken care
of, further use of the medication does not help the patient, but actually
weakens them.
Supporters of Affirmative Action feel that the problem is not taken
care of. They feel that prejudice and discrimination is not eradicated and
therefore continued use of Affirmative Action is required. They are only
half correct. Though it is significantly less than what it was twenty or
thirty years ago, the problem of prejudice and discrimination is not
completely gone. Continued use of Affirmative Action, however, will not
eradicate the small amount of discrimination and prejudice that is left; it
will only add to it. Most of todays adults and young adults are not
prejudice. These two generations are significant because one is our
current work force and employers, and the other group will soon take their
place. The people of these generations did not grow up in a house that was
prejudice so they did not learn to be prejudice as children. But when a
young adult white male does not get the job he applied for or did not get
accepted to the university of his choice, and finds out that his spot was
filled by a less qualified or even equally qualified person of minority
status, because a quota had to be met, resentment and ill-will is sure to
set in. Had he not gotten the job simply because someone else was hired
instead, who happened to be a minority, he would not have taken it so
personally and would have continued his job search, but when he finds out
that he did not get the job because he was not a minority, then the seed of
discrimination begins to grow within him. The policy is trying to create a
color-blind society by giving special treatment to certain groups of people
at the expense of other groups of people. Could the policy be any more
hypocritical?
An intent of Affirmative Action was to provide special help to
groups that had been deprived equal treatment prior to the implementation
of the policy. It gives minorities access to jobs, universities, and other
institutions that they would otherwise not have access to. While this is a
good intent, it may not be the right thing to do. When a person is only
expected to meet standards that are less than what the majority is expected
to meet, it can cause a inner feeling of inferiority or insecurity. This
same conflict can be applied to those members of the majority. Members of
the majority who meet the requirements set forth by an institution are not
going to value a member of a minority who receives equal reward for
achieving lower level requirements.
Lowering requirements is not the answer; working harder is. This
statement can be applied to a broad spectrum of topics throughout all of
our lives. Lowering requirements only lowers performance. Lowering
performance weakens us all. When fire stations must meet a quota for
women firefighters, and must lower their standards to do so, this only
lowers the ability and effectiveness of the firefighting team. Jobs like
firefighting, police officers, military combat soldiers, and countless
others, require a certain degree of physical strength that is more
commonly found in men. When one of these institutions is forced to give
some of these jobs to unqualified people, regardless of race, sex, or
religion, it is dangerous for the unqualified person on the job, and it is
dangerous for the public that the unqualified person is expected to protect.
When the same situation is present in a place of business, and a company
is forced to hire two unqualified persons to do the job of one qualified
person, that business loses money and is that much more hindered in its
pursuit of growing and making our economy stronger. Affirmative Action is
damaging. A job should be awarded to the most qualified person, no matter
who they are.
I've have attempted to show that Affirmative Action policies, as they
exist right now, are ineffective, outdated, hypocritical, and harmful.
Though all of these may be argued equally well by the other side, this last
point is indisputable. Affirmative Action, no matter how it is explained,
rationalized, justified, or disguised, is discrimination, and therefore
wrong. Discrimination is defined as: "Treatment or consideration based on
class or category rather than individual merit; partiality or
prejudice,"(Webster) and that is exactly what Affirmative Action is. No
matter what the problem is, or how bad a situation is, doing something that
is wrong can never be the right course of action. This is an ideal that
has always been true, but is quite often broken, resulting is negative
effects and more problems. A course of action that is morally wrong,
ethically wrong, and economically wrong, is not the correct way, but an
easier way. Often, the correct way is more difficult and requires more
work, but nevertheless, it is the correct way. Two wrongs do not make a
right, but they do make more problems and prolong an actual resolution to
the problem.
Works Cited
Shapiro, Harold. "Affirmative Action: A continuing discussion / A
continuing commitment" Internet Source. Available at:
http://humanitas.ucsb.edu/projects/aa/docs/shapiro.html
Websters Dictionary Harbor House Publishers Inc. Baltimore. 1984
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