The Precedency: Supporting the Affrimative Action

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Affirmative action is a government policy that gives opportunities to minorities, women, and any group who has been the victim of discrimination in the past. Affirmative action is the outcome of the 1960’s Civil Rights movement, growing out of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which outlawed discrimination based on race, ethnicity, or gender. It was the 1978 Supreme Court decision, The Regents of the University of California v. Bakke, which allowed for the use of race-based preferences as a means of fostering diversity, allowing affirmative action to be used in admissions policies. It was created with the intention to provide equal opportunities for members of minority groups in education and employment. Initially, affirmative action focused on improving opportunities for African Americans. Colleges and universities used affirmative action in their admission process, with the hopes ofincreasing their enrollment of African Americans and later Hispanic students, two minorities that were falling behind in college acceptance rates. According to data from the National Center on Education Statistics (NCES), in 2007, 70 percent of white high school graduates immediately enrolled in college, compared to 56 percent of African American graduates and 61 percent of Hispanic graduates. As more and more educational institutions began using affirmative action policies in their admissions process, it became a target of great debate. With Americans taking sides as affirmative action supporters, opponents and “reformers”, the use affirmative action has become, and continues to be, a largely debated topic in American society. In today’s society, affirmative action supporters find themselves amongst a midst of criticisms and the large group of affirm... ... middle of paper ... ...d about affirmative action and become a member of the “reformers”, hoping to bring about a great deal of reforms to the current affirmative action policy. From the start of affirmative action to the present policies, affirmative action has been reformed in the past, growing from an equal employment based policy to one used in the college admissions process. So who says it cannot be reformed again? With a little help from state legislatures and affirmative action “reformers,” the future looks especially bright for affirmative action policies in the United States. As our society becomes more diverse, perhaps eventually affirmative action will fade out all together. Until then, supporters, opponents, and “reformers” will need to devise a way to allow affirmative action to reach a larger group of people, allowing more Americans the opportunity to be successful.

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