A634.4.4.RB - Is Affirmative Action Ethical?

In the 1960’s, the Civil Rights Movement intended to provide equal opportunities for members of minority groups and women in education and employment as a result affirmative action was born (Affirmative Action | Overview, 2014). Affirmative action is a policy, which allows organization and state institutions to allow then recruiting and diversifying their organization. Affirmative action itself has been defined as "any measure, beyond simple termination of a discriminatory practice, adopted to correct or compensate for past or present discrimination or to prevent discrimination from recurring in the future."(Affirmative Action, 2016). According to LaFollette (2007), affirmative action is the practice of giving special consideration to minorities and women in hiring and school placement. It has the means of taking positive steps to end discrimination, to prevent its recurrence, and to create new opportunities that were previously denied minorities and women (Affirmative Action, 2016). The intention is to undercut racist habits, and corral racist institutions (LaFollette, 2007). LaFollete describe it as a reasonable and effective way to do both” A great example is the 2008 case of Fisher v. University of Texas, where a white student felt discriminated against because she didn’t get in to the school where her minority friends with not so good grades got in (Raphel, 2015). This case brought some light on how universities utilize the affirmative action program; universities may use race as part of a holistic admissions program where it cannot otherwise achieve diversity (Raphel, 2015). In the end the court ruled on the side of the University.

In my personal opinion, I don’t believe affirmative action is fair. The reason is because of the ability to retain the integrity of the policy. Schools and even organizations are being selective of applicants in order to ensure there is a balance of diversity within the organization. I don’t believe affirmative action is in keep with today’s demands. Every single person should have the same opportunity no matter the race or color. This rule is not being used in many states already. For example in the case of Hopwood v. Texas in 1996, the Fifth Circuit dismissed Justice Powell's opinion in Bakke, ruling that a university's interest in a diverse student body was never compelling, and that race could no longer be used as one among several factors in admissions decisions in Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi (Affirmative Action, 2016). I think as a culture we need to change, it’s not about the race or color of a person, but how qualify the person is.

Reference

Affirmative Action. (2016). Retrieved April 17, 2016, from http://www.civilrights.org/resources/civilrights101/affirmaction.html

 

Affirmative Action | Overview. (2014). Retrieved April 13, 2016, from http://www.ncsl.org/research/education/affirmative-action-overview.aspx

LaFollette, H. (2007). The practice of ethics. Malden, Mass: Blackwell Pub.

Raphel, A. (2015). Affirmative action in university admissions: Research roundup - Journalist's Resource. Retrieved April 17, 2016, from http://journalistsresource.org/studies/society/race-society/affirmative-action-in-university-admissions-research-roundup