Affirmative Action

917 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Influence of affirmative action

Prof. Bishop
Affirmative Action
Affirmative Action in the United States is described as an employment positive practice to overcome historical discrimination by allocating jobs and resources to members of particular groups such as women, handicapped, veterans and minorities. The Affirmative action policy was put in to place by federal agencies enforcing those governmental institution receiving federal funds such as government contractors and educational institutions to develop such programs as The Equal Opportunities Act.
During the Civil Rights act of 1964 antidiscrimination employment legislations were put in to place providing protection to both applicants and employees. Despite the Civil Right Act discrimination continued to persist it was on 1961 that President Kennedy mentioned for the first time “Affirmative Action.” The leader that developed and enforced the program was President Johnson “We seek… not just equality as a right and a theory, but equality as a fact and as a result.” President Johnson foundation was to achieve equal opportunity providing the necessary resources and increasing the opportunity in both employment and higher education. The employers with written Affirmative action programs must keep them as part of their Personnel policies and update them annually. The APP delineate the proactive steps utilize by the company to attract the unrepresented group.
Through the years different Presidents have tried to made changes in the minority employment opportunities pressured by civil rights activist and the African community. During the 1870 to 1900 a considerable amount African Americans held government position including 20 members of the house and two senators. During the reconstruction of the gov...

... middle of paper ...

...p even though Adarand gave the lowest bid. According to Adarand the Government's use of race based presumptions in identifying such individuals, violates the equal protection component of Due Process Clause.
The court agreed that all racial classifications whether imposed by local authorities, state and Federal government must pass strict scrutiny review. The decision of the case five jurors voted in favor of Adarand and four votes against. I agree with the decision we need to be fair among all, if Adarand Contractor bid was lower they should have been selected. Equal employment opportunity should be used with everyone, we all have the right to defend ourselves if our rights are been violated. In this case Adarand had the right to claim justice especially when the prime contractor sent and affidavit stating that they would have given the contract to Adarand.

Show More
Related

  • Foster V. Chatman Case Summary

    1049 Words  | 3 Pages

    In a Georgia Court, Timothy Foster was convicted of capital murder and penalized to death. During his trial, the State Court use peremptory challenges to strike all four black prospective jurors qualified to serve on the Jury. However, Foster argued that the use of these strikes was racially motivated, in violation of Batson v. Kentucky, 476 U. S.79. That led his claim to be rejected by the trial court, and the Georgia Supreme Court affirmed. The state courts rejected relief, and the Foster’s Batson claim had been adjudicated on direct appeal. Finally, his Batson claim had been failed by the court because it failed to show “any change in the facts sufficient to overcome”.

    Read More

  • Smith V. Case Brief

    976 Words  | 2 Pages

    My Response. I think the court made the right decision by granting the defendants’ motion for summary judgement as to the plaintiff’s sexual harassment claim, since her gender was not a contributing factor in this case. However, regarding the law in this case, I find it strange that just because Lynch treated both men and women equally badly, this would nullify Smith’s claim for hostile work environment sexual harassment, when such harassment clearly took place. Why does the harassment have to be towards one sex only for there to be a valid legal case? Should it not be enough that she was subjected to unwelcome sexual harassment?

    Read More

  • Meacham v. Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory

    1259 Words  | 3 Pages

    The case Meacham v. Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory did in fact uphold the jury's findings that employees who are on the older side had lost their jobs through a layoff plan. This discrimination was unintentional. However, the policy did have an impact that was deemed discriminatory and the firm could have reached its goals through a different method that would not effectively discriminate. The reason for the suit had to do with the fact that thirty of thirty-one people who were laid off were over the age of forty. There were 26 plaintiffs who did go to trial while some of the others settled with the company on their own. In the end, the jury awarded plaintiffs a total award of $4.2. The case was appealed and at the time, Knolls argued that the law really does not allow disparate impact claims, citing Hazen Paper Co. v. Biggins, 507 U.S. 604 (1993), where a claim involved disparate treatment and what was needed was proof of intentional discrimination. The Court claims that the Hazen Paper Court had not resolved the appropriate use of ADEA in terms of disparate impact. It was further stated that the decisions to come from other circuits do not necessarily overrule prior cases. The idea that disparate impact claims may not be allowed under ADEA is therefore rejected.

    Read More

  • A Nation Under Our Feet Summary

    534 Words  | 2 Pages

    Hahn discusses both the well-known struggle against white supremacy and the less examined conflicts within the black community. He tells of the remarkable rise of Southern blacks to local and state power and the white campaign to restore their version of racial order, disenfranchise blacks, and exclude them from politics. Blacks built many political and social structures to pursue their political goals, including organizations such as Union Leagues, the Colored Farmers’ Alliance, chapters of the Republican Party, and emigration organizations. Hahn used this part of the book to successfully recover the importance of black political action shaping their own history.

    Read More

  • The Judicial Process and Batson Case

    2726 Words  | 6 Pages

    In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Batson. The Court held that the Fourteenth Amendment forbids the prosecutor from challenging potential jurors solely on account of their race or on the assumption that black jurors as a group will be unable to consider the state’s case ag...

    Read More

  • Historical Methodology

    2024 Words  | 5 Pages

    The Strange Career of Jim Crow, by C. Van Woodward, traces the history of race relations in the United States from the mid and late nineteenth century through the twentieth century. In doing so Woodward brings to light significant aspects of Reconstruction that remain unknown to many today. He argues that the races were not as separate many people believe until the Jim Crow laws. To set up such an argument, Woodward first outlines the relationship between Southern and Northern whites, and African Americans during the nineteenth century. He then breaks down the details of the injustice brought about by the Jim Crow laws, and outlines the transformation in American society from discrimination to Civil Rights. Woodward’s argument is very persuasive because he uses specific evidence to support his opinions and to connect his ideas. Considering the time period in which the book and its editions were written, it should be praised for its insight into and analysis of the most important social issue in American history.

    Read More

  • The March on Washington - August 28, 1963

    1353 Words  | 3 Pages

    Nabrit, James M. Jr. “The Relative Progress and the Negro in the United States: Critical Summary and Evaluation.” Journal of Negro History 32.4 (1963): 507-516. JSTOR. U of Illinois Lib., Urbana. 11 Apr. 2004

    Read More

  • Civil Rights: Affirmative Action

    1165 Words  | 3 Pages

    The roots of affirmative action may be traced back to the early 1960’s, during the Civil Rights Movement. It was in 1961 that President John F. Kennedy issued an Executive Order that first introduced affirmative action. This order included an establishment that government contractors “take affirmative action to ensure that applicants are employed, and employees are treated fairly during employment, without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin.” (University of California Irvine) Over the years, there have been many adjustments to affirmative action, but they all reiterated the same general idea. This idea is that there would be equal opportunity for all qualified persons, and to take positive actions in order to ensure there would be equal opportunity for all. (University of California Irvine) Affirmative action has been successful, it has increased the number of recruiting and screening practices by employers, raised employers’ inclination to hire denounced applicants, increased the number of minority or female applicants and employees, and it increased the likelihood that employers will provide training and evaluate the...

    Read More

  • Is Affirmative Action still needed?

    973 Words  | 2 Pages

    The issue of affirmative action has been a controversial one since its inception. The law was developed during the 1960’s as a result of the civil rights movement and the need to address injustices committed against minorities throughout the United States history. There were multiple attempts to correct the inequities between the majority and the various minorities including the 13, 14 and 15th Amendments. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 allowed for the creation of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to create rules to end discrimination. Affirmative action came into being with the executive order 11246 issued by President Johnson. The Civil Rights Act and President Johnson’s executive order have been updated throughout the years to address gender, disabilities, age and other characteristics that could be considered discriminatory.

    Read More

  • affirmative action

    1823 Words  | 4 Pages

    Affirmative action is an attempt by the United States to amend a long history of racial discrimination and injustice. Our school textbook defines affirmative action as “a program established that attempts to improve the chances of minority applicants for educational or employment purposes, although they may have the same qualifications, by giving them leverage so that they can attain a level that is equal to caucasian applicants” (Berman 522). There are people that support and oppose this issue. Opponents of affirmative action have many reasons for opposing this issue, one of them being that the battle for equal rights is over, and that this advantage made for people of color discriminates against people that are not of color. The people that defend affirmative action argue this advantage is needed because of how badly discriminated the people of color once were. Because of the discrimination that once was these people claim that they are at a disadvantage, and always have been, therefore equality of opportunity is needed. It is also said that affirmative action is used to encourage diversity and integration. This paper will discuss the history of affirmative action, how it is implemented in society today, and evaluate the arguments that it presents.

    Read More

  • Affirmative Action

    1086 Words  | 3 Pages

    After you graduate from college, you will be putting in your application for a job that you went to college for. Even though you might be the most qualified for the job you still might not obtain the position. Affirmative Action sometimes causes this because companies have to hire a certain number of minorities relative to the size of the company. This means that if there are no minority citizens available, immigrants who aren’t even US citizens can take the position. This is why Affirmative Action should be readjusted, because it is helping immigrants instead of the people it was meant for, American citizens.

    Read More

  • Affirmative Action

    2787 Words  | 6 Pages

    When people talk about the civil rights movement, the first thing that comes to mind is the famous speech “I have a dream” by Martin Luther King. His dream in short was to have equality among human beings. For the past thirty years, this country has been revolutionizing humanitarianism because there is greater concern for human welfare than one hundred years ago. The revolution began during the 1960’s, and during that era this country was drastically involved in changing the civil rights of minority groups. From this concern, a program called affirmative action evolved. Like other civil right movements, the affirmative action movement was implemented to promote equality.

    Read More

  • Is Our Justice System Fair to All?

    1191 Words  | 3 Pages

    Stevenson, Bryan A. Illegal Racial Discrimination in Jury Selection. Rep. Montgomery, Alabama: Equal Justice Initiative, 2010. Print.

    Read More

  • The Role of the Supreme Court in the Civil Rights Movement

    1964 Words  | 4 Pages

    John A. Kirk, History Toady volume 52 issue 2, The Long Road to Equality for African-Americans

    Read More

  • The Pros and Cons of Affirmative Action

    3452 Words  | 7 Pages

    Affirmative action or positive discrimination can be defined as providing advantages for people of a minority group who are seen to have traditionally been discriminated against. This consists of preferential access to education, employment, health care, or social welfare. In employment, affirmative action may also be known as employment equity. Affirmative action requires that institutions increase hiring and promotion of candidates of mandated groups. (Rubenfeld, 1997, p. 429)

    Read More

More about Affirmative Action

Open Document